Pythons, foxes, raccoons … People’s desire to keep these exotic wild animals as pets has fuelled Hong Kong’s illegal wildlife trade. But without ample wildlife protection measures, animals—and nature—are paying the cost
Sea turtle Taro might only be a few years old, but it’s already seen a lot of ups and downs in life. When Tatler visited it in its current home in Ocean Park’s Grand Aquarium, it was swimming happily in its tank, sometimes coming near the tank’s glass to check out visitors, at other times it chased around small manta rays, “mistaking their tails for food”, according to Cola Cheung, Ocean Park’s animal care specialist.
But only three months ago, Taro’s situation was drastically different. On June 24, Alvin Wong was working late at Aquameridian, a marine education centre in Quarry Bay. When Wong, who is the centre’s endangered species education director, opened his office door, he discovered a plastic container, in which there was a young sea turtle— whose shell measured 46cm by 40cm—swimming in water that was far too warm for it. Luckily, the turtle didn’t have any injuries.
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Taro when it was discovered in June (Photo: courtesy of Aquameridian)
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He called Sharon Kwok-Pong, the founder of Aquameridian and local animal rights activist. “I thought it was a prank. It must be an electric toy. It was far too ridiculous to be true,” Kwok-Pong recalls.
The box came with an anonymous letter from the owner, who said that he bought Taro, the turtle when it was the size of a human palm from an online shop—Kwok-Pong adds that this meant Taro was a newborn. In the years to come, Taro grew bigger until the owner’s home was no longer fit to keep it. “The owner wrote that since we love animals, we could perhaps provide the best solution for the turtle,” Kwok-Pong says. “I could understand the matter from the owner’s perspective, and sending us the turtle was a responsible action [when one can no longer take care of the animal], but what was irresponsible was buying the turtle online [in the first place].”
