Project Update: May 2009

Within the last four months we have finalized almost all the project’s activities and we have finished the scientific evaluation of the species’ conservation status that was sent to IUCN's Chelonian Specialist Group.

After processing and summarizing the technical report, a scientific article was sent for peer-review to North-Western Journal of Zoology, with the title Assessment of threatened status of Testudo hermanni boettgeri Mojsisovics, 1889 (Reptilia: Testudines: Testudinidae) populations from SW Romania by Laurentiu Rozylowicz and Mariana Dobre.

We have written a press release that was circulated in Romania through the media. Also, we have evaluated the habitat occupancy, by sampling GPS points and temperatures for 4 tortoises (2 males and 2 females) between May 2008 and April 2009. We have finished the quarantine infrastructure for the tortoises that are recuperated from outside their habitat. Between December 2008 and April 2009, 4 tortoises have been recuperated and kept in quarantine.

The tortoises were brought to us by some people that have contacted us after seeing the project’s webpage. We have almost finished the CD Hermann's Tortoise Needs Your Help and we have finished the web page that now includes a complete guide for identifying the Romanian’s tortoises that can be used by people without a biological background in order to identify the encountered tortoises and also to be able to give them the first aid if needed.