Soft-shelled turtle of rare species dies in Hà Nội

HÀ NỘI — A giant soft-shelled member of the world’s most endangered turtle species reportedly died in Đồng Mô Lake in Hà Nội’s Sơn Tây Town on Sunday morning. The Đồng Mô Lake turtle was discovered by Asian Turtle Programme conservationists in 2007. The soft-shell turtle in Đồng Mô Lake belongs to the species Rafetus swinhoei, the same species as the turtle in Hoàn Kiếm Lake. Besides the one which recently died at Đồng Mô, one is living in Suzhou Zoo, China and another in Xuân Khanh Lake, Hà Nội. The one in China reportedly died in 2019.