Crate with rare turtles, scorpions recovered in El Nido

MANILA, Philippines - An abandoned bamboo crate containing 47 nearly extinct freshwater turtles and 160 scorpions was recently recovered in El Nido, Palawan.

A box of sardine cans was also retrieved alongside the crate left by suspected illegal wildlife traders on June 9, the Palawan Council for Sustainable Development Staff said on Thursday.

Alex Mercaida of the council's wildlife traffic monitoring unit said that the live scorpions are of a lucrative predatory species endemic in the town.

The forest reptiles, meanwhile, are too rare and critically endangered that it was the first time authorities were able to recover a large number of them.

"We are surprised that they’re collecting them now in Palawan. We know that in the international illegal market for wildlife and pet traders they can fetch high prices like the beetles, but this is really the first time that we were able to recover such a large number of freshwater turtles and scorpions," Mercaida said in an interview with a state news outfit.

He said the scorpions can fetch a sizeable amount as Chinese medicine considers their sting to have healing wonders.

"They’ve found a new species that can be a lucrative source of income for them, and sadly, these are arthropod species that are very important to the balance of our eco-system, and their collection must be protected because they can dwindle fast," Mercaida said.

The wildlife council believes that the traders were supposed to ship the crate containing the live animals to Manila aboard a small vessel. It could have been abandoned after the unidentified dealers could not get past monitoring procedures of the agency.

The Philippine forest turtles also face extinction in the wilds as the species are endemic in the country.  - Camille Diola