Finding a Tortoise (not Nemo)

Finding a Tortoise (not Nemo)

A Reproduction
Finding a Book on Turtles / Tortoises
Turtles / Tortoises are now classified in the same species category.

I used to feed tortoises daily.
They were in plenty in Kandy Lake.
One day bystander told me not to do that.
Why?
If you do that the our Kassipu /Toddy / Illicit drinkers will take them and eat them was the answer.

His prediction was right in 1973 when food was scarce and children were dying of hunger our population of tortoises vanished.
 
This the Buddhist heritage city and that was how we practised Metta to all animals.
 
Other reason probably was the pollution of its water.
All the cesspits were opened to it with the waste water.
Then they (once the species was exterminated/genocide) pass a law stating it is a protected species.
We are good at closing the stable door once the horse has bolted.
We no longer practice Buddhist virtues.
Animal are food material and then they started catching dogs and cats for food during Perehara festival.
 
Vanishing species is not FOOD for THOUGHT anymore.
 
Below is a reproduction from elsewhere for your perusal.
Conservationists have declared 2011 the Year of the Turtle in an effort to raise public awareness of the precarious state of turtle populations around the world. 
Nearly half of all living turtle species are considered to be threatened with extinction. 
Of the well-known animal groups, turtles are disappearing the fastest.
We are in the midst of a worldwide decline in biodiversity. 
A staggering 12 percent of birds, 25 percent of mammals and 30 percent of amphibians are threatened with extinction.
Sadly, turtles offer no exception to this trend towards species loss. 
The International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN), an organization that maintains a comprehensive list of the status of the world’s species, categorizes 47 percent of all living turtle species as Threatened.
Turtles first appeared in the fossil record more than 200 million years ago during the Triassic Period. Since that time, they have changed little and today’s turtles bear much resemblance to their ancestors. Despite their long evolutionary history, turtles are now in danger of disappearing due to a variety of threats including habitat loss, over exploitation, pet trade, hunting for use in traditional medicine, by catch, invasive species, disease and climate change.
Many of the threats facing turtles are derived from human activities. Conservationists look to this fact with optimism—if man can create these threats, we can also reduced or eliminate them. They suggest a number of actions that can help ensure a more secure future for turtles. These actions include protecting rare turtle species and the habitats on which they rely, looking after common turtle species to ensure their populations remain healthy and managing crisis situations such as saving critically endangered turtle species and responding to emergencies such as oil spills.