The Wild Truth about the Tortoise Trade in Trinidad and Tobago

The Wild Truth about the Capuchin Trade in T&T 🚫 🐢 🇹🇹

Yellow-footed and Red-footed Tortoises (“Morrocoys”) have long been kept and traded in Trinidad and Tobago and the wider Southern Caribbean. Unfortunately, this has caused tremendous harm to animals, society, and the environment.

Due to over-exploitation, Yellow-footed Tortoises are now ‘Vulnerable’ to extinction, and local experts fear a similar status for Red-footed Tortoises, which have not yet been assessed. Morrocoys are increasingly rare in Trinidad and Tobago’s forests, depriving our ecosystems of essential seed dispersers. The trafficking in Morrocoys from the mainland also supports other more serious types of crime, including the importation of drugs and guns.

Watch this video to learn more about the many harms of the tortoise trade and what you can do to help.

You can learn more by visiting the Nurture Nature Campaign's website at www.nurturenaturett.org. We also encourage you to contact the El Socorro Centre for Wildlife Conservation (ecwc_tt) at (868) 366 4369 and wildlife.tt@gmail.com. This incredible organization also offers educational tours for those interested in discovering native wildlife and conservation issues.

Need to report harmful or illegal tortoise keeping or sale. Contact the Trinidad & Tobago Forestry Division at (868) 225-3837 and the Tobago Department of Natural Resources and Forestry at (868) 639-1966 and (868) 639-2234. You can also make an anonymous report to Crime Stoppers Trinidad and Tobago at (868) 800-8477.

This video was made possible with the generous support of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) and the US Agency for International Development (USAID).

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Видео The Wild Truth about the Tortoise Trade in Trinidad and Tobago канала The Nurture Nature Campaign