One of the world's rarest turtles dies leaving behind only three more of its kind
The fourth last of the world’s most rare turtle passed away in a Chinese zoo on the weekend, aged 90.
China’s last female Yangtze giant softshell turtle, Xiangxiang, died at Suzhou Zoo on Saturday, making it more likely the species will soon become extinct, People’s Daily reported.
Attempts to have the zoo’s Yangtze giant softshell turtle population grow naturally were unsuccessful, despite Xiangxiang sharing an enclosure with a male for several years.
The zoo will be completing an autopsy to determine what caused Xiangxiang’s death.
Besides the one male still at Suzhou Zoo, the only other two known living Yangtze giant softshell turtles live in the wild in Vietnam, however their genders are not known.
The species is the largest freshwater turtle in the world, with the animals capable of growing up to one metre in length and 100kg in weight.
Historically, the animal could have been found in inland Chinese waterways, however pollution, shipping traffic and ecological disruption saw the species’ rapid decline.
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