The British Chelonia Group, a previous supporter of TSA programs in India and Myanmar, will include $10,000 in their annual fund-raising drive for the TSA. Five thousand will support construction of two new headatarting facilities in India for the critically endangered red-crowned roofed turtle, Kachuga kachuga, that will alleviate crowding and allow turtles to be raised to at least 1000 grams prior to release.

A second gift from Roy Young and Rosa Venezia from Nature’s Own in Boulder, Colorado will provide $30,000 toward programs in Madagascar and India. The TSA’s India program is growing rapidly and our coordinator there Shailendra Singh continues to present us with exciting and compelling new conservation initiatives that he wants to pursue. We want to encourage this enthusiasm and are constantly seeking new sources of funds to allow this program to grow. India is a big country and our network is expanding along with our capacity to tackle challenging conservation issues. We urgently need to hire another full time biologist to work in India, and the Nature’s Own grant of $15,000 will help that to become a reality soon. We are seeking a match for this grant in order to maximize the impact.

The remaining $15,000 will be directed to Madagascar, a hotspot of chelonian endemism and a country where TSA needs to cultivate a stronger presence. With seven endemic taxa (6 tortoises and 1 freshwater turtle), all ranked either Endangered or Critically Endangered, there is much work that needs to be done. While the threats to some species have been somewhat abated in recent years (curbing commercial collection for the pet trade for example), they are mounting for others. Radiated tortoises are being slaughtered at an alarming rate in the south and increasingly poached ploughshare tortoises turn up illegally in Asian markets.

To develop a strategy to save Madagascar’s chelonians, a workshop will be held there in January 2008 that will evaluate the current threats and recommend conservation and research actions designed to safeguard these species.

This grant will be administered in accordance with the workshop priorities and be used to implement some of the recommended projects that will be fortcoming. These funds match another $15,000 contained in the recent Batchelor Foundation grant and will position the TSA to emerge as a strong supporter of turtle conservation in Madagascar.