Rare turtle at NRW airport poses a mystery
Created: 2023-01-02 15:47
The moorish tortoise after its arrival in Germany.
© Duisburg Main Customs Office
Customs discovered a Moorish tortoise on a plane at Weeze Airport.
How exactly the animal got on board is unclear.
Weeze/Duisburg – It is one of the endangered and protected animal species and one of them now lives in NRW, even if nobody really knows why: the moorish tortoise.
A specimen of such a turtle has now been discovered by customs at Weeze Airport.
Apparently, the spur tortoise was discovered on December 29 as a "stowaway" on board a flight from Marrakesh (Morocco), reports 24RHEIN.
Rare turtle discovered after flight at Weeze Airport
"The turtle was on the plane without an owner and was handed over to the customs officers after landing," reports customs from Duisburg.
How exactly the turtle got on the plane is unclear.
After an initial treatment, she was handed over to the Terrazoo in Rheinberg (Wesel district).
The experts there then determined that the tortoise was a specimen of the spur tortoise.
Moorish tortoise
The moor tortoise can grow up to 35 centimeters and weigh over five kilograms.
This makes it one of the small to medium-sized turtles.
It has a life expectancy of 60 to 80 years.
The animals live mainly in North Africa and in parts of southern Europe and Asia.
The spur tortoise is a herbivore and its species is classified as endangered and thus strictly protected.
Moorish tortoise: Probably imported without documents
A customs spokeswoman emphasizes that the spur tortoise is protected under the Washington Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species.
"Due to the threat to their population, import and export can only be carried out with species protection documents.
This certificate probably did not exist, because an owner could not be identified among the passengers," said the spokeswoman.
"If you take protected animals, plants or objects made from them, you are not only threatened with confiscation, but also with a fine."
(bs/ots)