Over the weekend at my in-laws' place in Bulacan, a nephew showed to me a turtle they caught in the nearby river. When I saw the amphibian animal, it seems similar to the turtles that are sold to Asian restaurants that has turtle on their menus.
The teenage boys that caught the turtle found the animal turned upside down along the bank of the river. It was very tired trying to get to its natural bearing but to no avail. I'm estimating its weight to be at least half a kilogram, with about a foot in length. Its carapace is more leathery than hard shell, and it has web feet, similar to ducks' feet.
Aggressive and obviously carnivorous, it bites any object that we put near its face. After googling its name and photo from the internet, I'm still confused whether its a Malayan or Chinese soft shell turtle.
This turtle seem to thrive well on our local rivers, and its grandparents probably have escaped from a pet shop or pet owners nearby. I hope that our endemic Philippine turtle will be as lucky in expanding their population, as its currently included on the the roster of endangered species.
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