Sal-Forest Tortoise- Critically Endangered

The sal-forest tortoise is recently assessed as a critically endangered species.

The sal-forest tortoise species found in India come under the threatened category in the IUCN red list.
According to the IUCN, the population had fallen by 80% in the last three generations and is now a critically endangered species.
Due to human activities, there is a severe existential threat to the species.
The tortoise is collected for food, for making decorative masks and in international wildlife trade.
Ecologistsfrom the Wildlife Institute of India, Dehradun, found that the area designated as a protected area network is only a small habitat of the species.
Over 90% of the habitat distribution of the species falls outside the protected area.
The study also shows that 29% of the distribution of the species falls within the high occurrence of fire zone areas. This includes the Uttarakhand state, which is the western distribution of the species.
Northeast India is a suitable place for the species, but they experience Jhum fire.
Forest fires may impact forest floor thus changing the community on which the reptiles depend.

The WII ecologists say that the tortoise should be part of a regular monitoring effort.
During summers, the tortoises select moist patches such as dry stream beds. Such moist patch areas should be protected from forest fires, they suggest.
Experts also suggest that developing Conservation Units and transboundary conservation reserves such as Manas for the Indo-Bhutan region and the Sundarbans for the India-Bangladesh region will help protect the species.

The sal-forest tortoise is also known asan elongated tortoise (Indotestudo elongate) and as a yellow tortoise in many parts of Asia.
The sal-forest tortoise is found in Nepal, Bangladesh, India, Myanmar, Laos, Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam, western Malaysia, and southern China.
The sal-forest tortoise is widely found in the eastern and northern parts of India.
They are small (12 to 14 inches long) and hardy, long-lived.

The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) is composed of both government and civil society organizations. It is established in the year 1964.
India is a member of IUCN from the year 1969. The Indian country office was established in the year 2007 in New Delhi.
The IUCN India aims to reduce ecosystem and species loss by facilitating tools and knowledge to value, conserve, and use biodiversity sustainability.
According to IUCN, 132 species of plants and animals are listed as endangered species in India.