Trade Regulation & Repatriation

The Turtle Conservancy monitors and helps fund conservation efforts to protect turtles from illegal trade. We also participate in management of confiscations—internationally in Palawan in 2015 with Siebenrockiella leytensis, or in 2018 in Madagascar with Astrochelys radiata. Throughout the years, the TC has also rescued a significant number of Ploughshare Tortoises from the illegal trade. Those animals are now part of our breeding captive colony. We are documenting the trade by producing documentaries and other media in order to raise awareness and prevent people from purchasing illegal animals.

The TC is also part of the AZA SAFE American Turtle Program. Through this network, we are joining forces with state wildlife agencies, academics, non-government organizations, and law enforcement to tackle turtle trade in the US. Unfortunately, North American turtles are seriously threatened because of the demand, particularly Box turtles (Terrapene carolina), Wood turtles (Glyptemys insculpta) or Spotted Turtles (Clemmys guttata). The Turtle Conservancy has rescued more than 500 turtles, including 169 from 18 species in 2023. The estimated care for a single poached turtle is roughly $1,000 per animal in the first year. With some turtles living more than 100 years, the burden of housing and caring for confiscations is a serious problem. In 2024, for the first time, the TC successfully repatriated American turtles back into the wild in New Jersey after they were confiscated in California.