Chester Zoo is now home to an extremely rare three-legged ploughshare tortoise named Hope, who was rescued from illegal wildlife smugglers.
After being seized, Hope was found to be missing his front leg, as well as the claws on his hind left leg. Before his arrival at Chester Zoo, experts fitted three support rollers under Hope’s lower shell to help him to walk and balance.
According to a news release, ploughshare tortoises are one of the rarest animals in the world. There are fewer than 300 remaining in the wild.
Hope was rescued by customs officials. The illegal trafficker was found with a suitcase containing 57 live and endangered tortoises. He was jailed for two years.
Hope rescued from wildlife smugglers
Chester Zoo’s vets have made further modifications to Hope’s wheels so he can easily move around his new surroundings.
“Ploughshare tortoises are exceptionally rare,” said Dr Gerardo Garcia, curator of lower vertebrates and invertebrates. “It’s not just the world’s most threatened species of tortoise – it’s one of the most threatened animals on the planet!”
“Hope is settling nicely into his new home, and his prosthetic works so well that he moves even quicker than his three neighbours,” Garcia added.
“Once he’s more developed, he’ll go on to produce offspring and contribute to the survival of the species thanks to the vital insurance population in conservation zoos.”
In the wild, ploughshare tortoises can only be found in Madagascar. Outside of the country, 63 ploughshare tortoises exist legally as part of conservation breeding programmes. Four of these are at Chester Zoo.
“With so few ploughshare tortoises remaining on the planet, every single birth could be absolutely crucial to their survival,” said Kat Finch, a conservation scientist at Chester Zoo.
“The ploughshare tortoise is a species that’s sadly under huge pressure for its survival and there’s a very real possibility that this species could be lost forever,” said Mike Jordan, the zoo’s director of animals and plants.
“That’s why Hope is such an important addition to the zoo.”
Images: Chester Zoo
