Look out! Abandoned terrapins about

http://www.independent.co.uk/environment/nature/look-out-abandoned-terrapins-about-1863903.html

Discarded pet turtles are turning up in urban ponds across the country – with devastating consequences for indigenous wildlife

Such is the scale of the problem that 51 terrapins and turtles, from five different species, were recently removed from a single pond in a north London park after the local authority called in a specialist trapper. Two years ago, a colony of 150 of the creatures was removed from the 25 ponds on Hampstead Heath and re-homed at a sanctuary in Tuscany.

The result is a double headache for conservation groups as they try to control the problem by trapping and removing the unwanted invaders but struggle to find new homes for the captives because of their longevity (some species can live for up to 50 years) and the costs of running a dedicated aquarium. One sanctuary receives unwanted animal at a rate of six a week.