WCS (Wildlife Conservation Society) and the Royal Government of Cambodia’s Fisheries Administration announced today that 21 captive-raised southern river terrapins have been released back into their native habitat in southwest Cambodia. More than 150 villagers, government representatives, and religious leaders attended ceremonies for the release.

In conjunction with the Cambodian Fisheries Administration and Wildlife Reserves Singapore, WCS helped a captured Southern River terrapin, one of the rarest and most endangered turtles on Earth, make her way back into the wild. The release, on the shores of the Sre Ambel River in Cambodia, marks a hopeful sign for the species' survival.