Tracking what's alive on Earth and what affects it.
Humans, now
On the wall: 1,000 or fewer left in the wild
Yangtze giant softshell turtle (Swinhoe's softshell)
at least1
At least this many
2024
Rafetus swinhoei
Vietnam (lakes near Hanoi) and China (one zoo animal)
Counted 2024, by WCS Vietnam (released 15 January 2025).
At least 1 Yangtze giant softshell turtle (Swinhoe's softshell) is known alive in the wild, a minimum and not a total, counted in 2024 by WCS Vietnam.
At least 1 wild turtle is known alive; WCS Vietnam says captive breeding depends on finding more.
How it was counted
The figure is not an estimate: it covers known animals only, 1 wild turtle of unknown sex that WCS Vietnam's release places in Xuan Khanh Lake, Vietnam, as of 2024. Beside the wild figure, 1 captive male is held at Suzhou Zoo in China.
A minimum, not a total: the figure counts the wild turtles known alive, not an estimate of how many there are.
What moves it
WCS Vietnam names the pressure: so few turtles are known that more must be found before the species can be bred in captivity.
- too few known animals to breed: more turtles must be found before a captive pair can be formed. Source: Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) Vietnam.
Who is helping
WCS, working with the Asian Turtle Program of Indo-Myanmar Conservation (ATP-IMC) and CRES, has a portable eDNA test for searching Vietnam's lakes for surviving turtles.
The next count
No date is known for the next count; the figure is updated on a birth or death.
Sources
- Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) Vietnam Last checked 12 November 2026.
What changed
- 12 November 2026 Added to Live Species, on the wall (1,000 or fewer): At least 1 (At least this many, 2024).
Next on the wall
The letter
The letter comes once a month, on the first Thursday. It gives what changed on Live Species, one animal up close and the humans figure for contrast.