AKP Phnom Penh, September 08, 2025—

The Angkor Centre for Conservation of Biodiversity (ACCB) announced the successful hatching of a critically endangered Black Marsh Turtle (Siebenrockiella crassicollis) last week.

While the hatching of a single turtle may seem modest compared to larger breeding initiatives, ACCB officials hailed it as a significant achievement. 

This marks only the second successful breeding of the species at the centre, following two hatchlings in 2024, which continue to be reared on-site.

According to the ACCB, the parent turtles were originally rescued from illegal roadside vendors, initiating the centre's efforts to establish a viable assurance population for this threatened species.

The Black Marsh Turtle is known for its low reproductive rate; females lay only one or two large eggs per clutch, though they may produce up to three or four eggs in a single breeding season.

The Black Marsh Turtle is one of ten endangered turtle species in Cambodia. The other nine are: the Southern River Terrapin (Batagur affinis), the Yellow-headed Temple Turtle (Heosemys annandalii), the Cantor's Giant Softshell Turtle (Pelochelys cantorii), the Mekong Snail-eating Turtle (Malayemys subtrijuga), the Asiatic Softshell Turtle (Amyda cartilaginea), the Elongated Tortoise (Indotestudo elongata), the Impressed Tortoise (Manouria impressa), the Giant Asian Pond Turtle (Heosemys grandis), and the Green Turtle (Chelonia mydas).

By Phal Sophanith