Dozens of baby turtles set free in Quebec river as part of zoo conservation project

A person holds a spiny softshell turtle prior to releasing it into the wild in Pike River, Que., Saturday, Aug. 24, 2024 (The Canadian Press/Graham Hughes)

Dozens of endangered baby spiny softshell turtles are being released into a southern Quebec river today as part of a project to help save the species.

The Granby zoo east of Montreal collects turtle eggs and hatches them in an incubator as a way of protecting the nests from predator's fangs and flooding events.

Zoo conservation coordinator Chelsey Paquette was on hand today at a turtle festival in Pike River, where local families were given the chance to handle the weeks-old baby turtles before they slipped into the murky waters near Lake Champlain.

The zoo has been releasing the turtles for about 15 years, but hopes to pick up the pace as its focus increasingly shifts from keeping animals in captivity to letting them go.

Paquette says the zoo is hoping to introduce thousands of individuals into the wild in the coming years, including more species of turtles, bats and birds, as part of a conservation mission announced earlier this year.

She says there have been signs that the spiny softshell turtle release program is working, but it's a slow process given that the babies being set free today won't be ready to reproduce for another dozen years or so.

-This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 24, 2024.