KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 27 — When you think of turtles of Malaysia, chances are it’s leatherback, green or hawksbill marine turtles that come to mind.

But did you know that we have 18 species of freshwater turtles, including river terrapins that are only found in the wild here and in Cambodia?

To spread awareness on freshwater turtles, the lesser-known cousins of sea turtles, Turtle Conservation Society of Malaysia (TCS) co-founder Dr Chen Pelf Nyok published and launched the Turtles of Malaysia colouring book in July last year.

Since then, about 300 copies have been sold and 1,700 copies distributed to school children of Terengganu for free during their Turtle Awareness Programmes.

The 44-page bilingual colouring book co-authored by conservationist Loretta Ann Shepherd and illustrated by Yap Kim Ming, features three species of tortoises, four species of softshell turtles, also known as labi-labi and 11 species of terrapins, including aquatic and semi-aquatic turtles as well as river terrapins.

"There was no such colouring book in the market or book shops, so the idea was to fill that gap,” said 42-year-old Chen, who has a PhD in Zoology from National University of Malaysia.

She deliberately left out sea turtles so that the focus would be on freshwater turtles, who are so critically endangered that 10 of 18 species are listed as Totally Protected under Malaysia’s Wildlife Conservation Act 2010, which was amended in 2022.

"Sea turtles are very glamorous, already well-known, the whole world knows them. Once leatherbacks are in the picture, people can’t seem to notice anything else.”

Last month, TCS held a Giving Tuesday fundraiser that raised another 1,037 copies of Turtles of Malaysia, which will be distributed to more school children in Terengganu in March, 2024, which marks the start of the new academic year.

Founded in 2011 and based in Kemaman, Terengganu, TCS conducts two to three-hour educational turtle camps for school children, mostly in rural Terengganu.

"We give talks, put on turtle exhibits with specimens and give them goody bags with the colouring book inside,” said Chen who has been doing work on freshwater turtles since 2004 and won a regional scholarship to do her PhD from the CIMB Foundation in 2011.

When they get invited by schools in KL, TCS will also set up a booth selling turtle batik merchandise, made by women from villages in Terengganu.

"It’s our way of trying to self-sustain,” said Chen. "Also, the women get paid to sew various turtle-batik products so they make an income for their families.”

She added that when they do their camps in schools, the reaction is pretty much the same.

"Teacher, parents, even grandparents, tell us again and again, they didn’t even know we have freshwater turtles in Malaysia.”

Since 2011, TCS has been microchipping river terrapins in Kemaman River through its mark and recapture programme.

Eggs collected from river banks are incubated in the sand for three months in hatcheries located in local communities.

The hatchlings are then head-started (raised in a pond for a few months) before they are released into Kemaman River on Terrapin Independence Day, which is an annual public event celebrated on the first Saturday of October.

"If we don’t do this, all the eggs will be eaten by neighbouring villagers and monitor lizards,” said Kuantan-born Chen who grew up in Ipoh and Melaka.

"We have a few anti-poaching teams in the kampung and they will patrol four nesting banks every year because there will always be somebody from neighbouring villages who wants to collect the eggs for consumption.”

Even though over 4,000 hatchlings have been released in the past 12 years since 2011, latest findings show that there are only 235 adult terrapins in Kemaman River.

"The problem is they take 20 years to reach sexual maturity and lay eggs,” said Chen, who has a 12-year-old daughter with her taekwondo instructor husband.

"So many things can happen in 20 years, adults may get killed by fishing gear, and hatchlings may get eaten by crocodiles and monitor lizards. We need to wait another eight years to find out how successful our conservation project is.”

The survival of our terrapins is crucial as they perform ecological roles in dispersing seeds of mangrove fruits, helping to clean up the rivers by feeding on animal carrion and providing a source of food to other wildlife through their eggs.

Apart from the Department of Wildlife and National Parks (Perhilitan), TCS is the only NGO doing work on freshwater turtles with the rest focusing on sea turtles.

"We need more people to be their voice or else they will become extinct right under our noses.”

To find out how you can help raise funds for freshwater turtle conservation or sponsor an educational turtle camp for 50 students for only RM700, visit https://www.turtleconservationsociety.org.my/