No Safe Haven

 15 giant Galapagos tortoises found slaughtered

If an animal were to be safe anywhere in the world, you'd think that the Galapagos Islands would be a good place.  They are isolated from the mainland by hundreds of miles.  They are sparsely inhabited.  The entire archipelago is basically a nature preserve, swarming with scientists and conservationists.  Their resident giant tortoises are among the most recognizable and beloved endangered species in the world.

And yet, here we are...

The details are still a little fuzzy, so I'm not sure if these tortoises were slaughtered and cut up for meat, or just killed for kicks.  Their deaths follow in the footsteps of increased reports of hatchlings being smuggled off the islands for sale in mainland South America, or further abroad.  It's all maddeningly frustrating.  Tremendous steps have been taken in recent years to help restore the numbers of these incredible animals.  Now, it feels like we're backsliding.

To me, these recent developments speak to two things.  First of all, guards can never be let down.  We need to step up efforts to protect the Galapagos and their unique wildlife, which means a multifaceted approach.  We need to step up antipoaching units, continue to remove invasive species, restore habitats, and make sure that local communities are benefiting from the islands in a sustainable manner to encourage them to protect their wildlife.  The fact that tourism has been slashed over the last two years on account of COVID can't have helped matters, and it may be that local people are feeling the financial pinch, which is weakening protection. 

Second, it reminds me of the important work that zoos and aquariums can do as insurance colonies for endangered species, especially those that have naturally tiny ranges in the wild.  If anything were ever to happen to the tortoises (again) and numbers in the wild were to drop perilously low, or even vanish, it would be beneficial to have a safety net of holder facilities around the world which can serve to restore the species.