LA Times: Asia's appetite for turtles threatens U.S. species

[marmar]

Asia's appetite for turtles threatens U.S. species
The reptiles, especially softshell turtles, are prized in China as food and as a source for traditional medicines. U.S. experts fear the trade could lead to extinctions.

By Kim Christensen
6:52 PM PST, December 26, 2008


The turtle tank at Nam Hoa Fish Market is empty, but not to worry: The manager of this bustling Chinatown store says he has plenty in back.

"Big ones," he says, spreading his hands as wide as a Christmas turkey.

He nods to a worker, who slides a large, waxed-cardboard box from a stack behind the counter and strips off the lid. Inside is a squirming burlap bag, from which he dumps two 15-pound softshell turtles that hit the cement with a clop, then flail helplessly on their backs.

"Miami," the shopkeeper says of the reptiles' origins. "All from Miami."

Fresh off a plane at Los Angeles International Airport, one of the hubs of the sprawling international turtle trade, the critters will help feed a huge and growing appetite for freshwater turtles as food and medicine. .......(more)

The complete piece is at: http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-turtle27-2008dec27,0,4252872.story