Rally at Hetauda for turtle protection.

KATHMANDU, May 26:A rally was held in Hetauda to urge turtle protection. Wildlife Conservation and Research Endeavor (Wild Care) Nepal held a conservation awareness rally in Hetauda on Thursday, coinciding with World Turtle Day.

Students at the event held turtle stickers and postcards, as well as   raised slogans with the message for conservation. The rally began at Forestry College's main entrance and finished there, passing via Flag Chowk and Buddha Chowk.

Every year on May 23, World Turtle Day is observed to promote awareness about turtles and the necessity of conservation efforts. On the same day, Wild Care performed an awareness session at the office of Makwanpur Gadhi Rural Municipality Ward No. 4.

Turtles are some of the world's most endangered creatures. According to researcher Rama Mishra, over half of all turtle species are in some way at risk of extinction. She states, "Among the 17 turtle species found in Nepal, the elongated tortoise known as Thotri is one of the most endangered." The number is declining because to meat consumption, illegal poaching, and use as pets.

According to Sabin Adhikari, a researcher at Wild Care, because turtles are slow-growing organisms, overconsumption has a significant influence on their populations. Turtles can lay between 4 to 100 eggs, but only a handful survive to adulthood, he said.