Endangered Turtles, Tortoises and Terrapins

About the Book The endangered Turtles (Marine and Freshwater) belongs to the group Testudines and the Class Reptilia. These are the only animals have protected shell and without any teeth but they have a break with powerful jaws. They live in different types of water as well as on land (Tortoises).

They are best scavangers and eat dead organisms including caracases and also purifies the water by ingestion of the small insects, plants and weeds that pollute the water.

They are distributed throughout India except in Himalayas. In recent, turtles, over exploitation of National resources for commercial fishing and prawn farming which effects The population of Testudines. Further breeding grounds and habitat of Turtles are disturbed because of hunting and construction activities. Pouching of the turtles and their eggs and meat are another threat. Moreover the predators like the dogs, Crabs monitor lizards, jackels, hyaena are spoil the nest and their eggs.

Almost all these animals are endangered and plow a significant role and hence they should be protected and conserve them for maintaining ecological balance and sustainable development in Nature. The details of the above aspects are presented in different Chapters of this book.

About the Author Dr. Madireddi Subba Rao got M.Sc. Zoology and Rank from Agra University, 1968 from Venkateswara University, Tirupati. He was Doctoral Research Fellow Creedmoor Hospital, New D.Sc. (IOU, Lanka) He visiting Hempstead, New USA. worked Postgraduate Lecturer Zoology 1978, Utkal Andhra University, Visakhapatnam, and retired in Now he is President Environmental Research Academy, International (EnRA).

He published Technical and Scientific Indian International Journals. 33 Ph.D.'s and 12 M.Phill. Degrees awarded He successfully completed major research sanctioned UGC, management Crocodiles, Sea turtiles and King Cobras. He Member, IUCN/SSC/Crocodile Specialist Group, Geneva and also Member CBSG (IUCN). He Fellow (London), ISEAS, NESA, NC, AEB. in Preservation Society, Florida, recognition in contemporary research, Environmental Science Academy, New awarded and decorated him Gold Medal and 1991, Andhra recognized research talents of Rao and awarded him Best Scientist ISEAS, Bangalore with Gold Medal 1997. His name placed Asia's Who's Man Achievement, 1996, 1997, 2000. was awarded or Zoologist by 2004 and AZRA in 2009.

Preface Conservation and Management of the Testudinal Resources including four groups: Sea Turtles, Fresh water Turtles, Tortoises and Terrapins, undoubtedly until fairly recent, this group of animals were the most neglected ones. But these animals are important and essential geatures that help in decreasing the diseases by mosquitoes and various fleas. They are also purifies the water by ingestion of the small insects and plants that contaminate the water.

Turtles play a significant role in maintaining the ecological balance in our water systems. Moreover, they are best scavangers. They feed on dead bodies and half burnt human corpuses thrown into the rivers, these by assisting in the recycling of Bacteria. Hence, Govt. of India has introduced the fresh water turtles in the Ganges river to clean the water bodies for ecological balance and sustainable development.

UGC, New Delhi and MOEF, Govt of India, New Delhi is an appeal to try, to understand these, which are probably the Earth's most understood poor creatures. So information on Testudinal (Turtles, Tortoises and Terrapins) resources in Andhra Pradesh is to update and these was no information even from for major regions.

**Contents and Sample Pages**