In News:

The Asian Giant Tortoise, the largest tortoise in mainland Asia, has been reintroduced into the Zeliang Community Reserve in Peren district, Nagaland. Local youth groups have been engaged as “tortoise guardians” to ensure protection.

About Asian Giant Tortoise

• Scientific name:Manouriaemysphayrei
• Common name: Asian Giant Tortoise / “Small elephants of the forests” (due to their role in forest ecology).
• Lineage: Among the oldest tortoise lineages in the world; display unique nesting behaviour similar to crocodilians, where they protect eggs and regulate incubation temperatures.
• Appearance: Hatchlings are greyish-brown, becoming charcoal-colored in adulthood.
• Diet: Bamboo shoots, tubers, soft vegetation, some invertebrates, and frogs.

Habitat & Distribution

• Habitat: Tropical and subtropical evergreen hill forests.
• Range in India: Northeastern states – Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Assam.
• Global distribution: Bangladesh, Myanmar, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia.

Ecological Role

• Seed Dispersal: Helps regenerate forests by dispersing seeds.
• Scavenging: Cleans forest floor by feeding on decomposed organic matter.

Threats

• Hunting and collection for consumption.
• Illegal trade (pets and exotic meat).
• Habitat destruction due to shifting cultivation, deforestation, and infrastructure projects.

Conservation Status

• IUCN Red List: Critically Endangered
• CITES: Appendix II

Conservation Efforts

• Captive Breeding & Assurance Colonies for population recovery.
• Reintroduction Programmes like the recent one in Nagaland.
• Community-based conservation with active participation of locals as guardians.
• Field Surveys to monitor population health and habitat conditions.