UPDATED: Over 1,800 turtles stolen from the wild – a major wildlife trafficking case exposed. Between January 2022 and December 2023, 1,700 loggerhead musk turtles, 100 striped-neck musk turtles and 15 striped mud turtles were poached from their native habitats in Florida and sold overseas. The shipments, valued in total $550,000, were part of U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Operation Southern Hot Herps, a coordinated enforcement action to detect and deter turtle poachers in the southeastern United States. The illegally collected turtles involved in this illicit pet trade were transported through San Francisco to Taiwan under export permits falsely claiming they were captive-bred. The shipment featured in these photos contained approximately 170 loggerhead musk turtles per box, packed in small laundry bags with wet paper towels and frozen packs of broccoli to keep them cool. Florida law protects fresh and marine turtle species from unregulated harvest. Loggerhead musk turtles, stripe...