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June 21, 2025

Mexican authorities rescue 3,400 trafficked baby turtles

The freshwater Meso-American slider turtles are protected in Mexico.
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The freshwater Meso-American slider turtles are protected in Mexico.

Mexican authorities said Friday they had rescued over 3,400 protected baby turtles stuffed into cardboard boxes set to be trafficked.

During a roadblock in the southern state of Chiapas, agents found the critters "in overcrowded conditions" in boxes in a vehicle whose driver was arrested on trafficking charges, the environmental protection prosecutor's office said in a statement.

The baby animals were freshwater Meso-American sliders, native to Mexico, Central America and Colombia.

They are protected in Mexico against overexploitation.

"The specimens were transported without documentation proving their legal origin, which constitutes a violation of environmental regulations," the prosecutor's office said.

The were taken to a specialized unit for rehabilitation and to determine whether they can be released back into the wild.

Mexican authorities said they had rescued over 3,400 freshwater Meso-American slider baby turtles.
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Mexican authorities said they had rescued over 3,400 freshwater Meso-American slider baby turtles.
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Over 3,400 protected Meso-American slider baby turtles, native to Mexico, Central America, and Colombia, were found in overcrowded conditions during a roadblock in Chiapas, Mexico. The turtles, lacking legal documentation, were seized and sent for rehabilitation to assess their potential release into the wild.

This summary was automatically generated using LLM.