We’ve always watched those videos of people saving turtles by pulling straws out of their noses or cutting the things that have gotten entangled around their neck. But have you ever seen someone spraying red paint on a shell to save a turtle?
This is what a kind couple did! In a post that went viral in a KL community group, this couple reportedly caught a frog-faced softshell turtle in their net!
Source: Facebook
So instead of selling it for a high price (it is huge), they decided to release it back into the wild. However, they do not want other people to catch it and sell instead.
What they did was paint the turtle’s back with red paint. Red paint signifies that the animal is part of a ritual called “fang sheng” (/放生). This ritual is usually done when Buddhists release animals such as fishes, tortoise, birds and insects back into the wild. It is said that by releasing captive animals will cleanse one’s sins and bring good karma. So to signify that they have been “released” and is part of a ritual, people use red paint as a mark.
Source: Facebook
When they were done with the painting, they released the turtle back into the water. The turtle turned to look at them a few times before going off into the river as if it was saying thank you to them. Awwww!
Upon further research, they discovered that the turtle they caught is called a frog-faced softshell turtle, or Cantor’s Giant Softshell, and it is on the IUCN’s Red List – which means that they are endangered and nearing extinction.
Source: Facebook
That said, the act of fang sheng might be harmful to the environment as well as it may introduce invasive species into the ecosystem which might cause native species to die off. People intending to practice this should take note of the ecosystem, unlike these uncles and aunties at the link below!
Also read: Uncles & Aunties Release Snapping Turtle Into Putrajaya Lake For Luck, But It’s An Invasive Species
