Dulce Gloria Native Community Leads the Repopulation of Endangered Amazonian Turtles

Arlindo Ruiz Santos, Asheninka leader and UAC community specialist, explains the repopulation of aquatic turtles.

Between July and August 2024, the Dulce Gloria native community, located on the Yurua River, led a significant effort to ensure the repopulation of Amazonian turtles (Podocnemis expansa), an endangered species. This project aims to contribute to the conservation of this Amazonian aquatic turtle, which is vital for ecological balance and the subsistence of local communities.

The Amazonian turtles play a fundamental role in the Amazonian ecosystem and is an essential source of protein for indigenous communities, who consume its meat and eggs. However, overexploitation and habitat destruction, caused by agriculture, logging, and mining, have put the species at risk, according to the Red Book of Threatened Wildlife in Peru, published by the Ministry of Agrarian Development and Irrigation (MIDAGRI, for its acronym in Spanish).

With technical support from Alto Purus National Park – SERNANP and Upper Amazon Conservancy, community members received theoretical and practical training to implement Amazonian turtles egg incubation sites. These initiatives are carried out under the leadership of Arlindo Ruiz Santos, an Asheninka leader with more than 20 years of experience in the repopulation of aquatic turtles.

Ruiz Santos, along with his family and other community members, patrols the natural river beaches to identify nests, collect and record the eggs, and then relocate them to semi-natural beaches where they are expected to hatch within 42 to 56 days.

This project is made possible thanks to the financial support of UAC, and its success depends on the engagement participation of indigenous communities. Together, we are working to preserve endangered species and protect the invaluable biodiversity of the Amazon.