VietNamNet Bridge – The Hanoi People's Committee has decided to move the deceased Hoan Kiem turtle to the Museum of Nature (Vietnam Academy of Sciences) for maintenance.

Representatives of the Hanoi People's Committee said the legendary turtle died because of natural law "birth - aging - disease - death", especially in cold weather.

Associate Professor Ha Dinh Duc, who has been researching the Hoan Kiem turtle for about 20 years, said he was informed about the death of the turtle at over 4pm on January 19 by an official from the Hoan Kiem Lake management board.

According to the Management Board of Hoan Kiem Lake, after the legendary turtle was found dead, the board staff brought the turtle to the Ngoc Son temple for cleaning and preservation.

At the same time, social media began publishing information about the turtle.

Hoan Kiem turtle to be replaced by Dong Mo turtle?

"The turtle has become an icon of the Ho Hoan Kiem Lake for many years so the Lake must have the turtle. I suggest bringing the giant turtle in Dong Mo Lake to the Hoan Kiem Lake", Prof. Dr. of biology Nguyen Lan Dung said.

Prof. Dung said in 2012 the Director of the Asian Turtle Program Douglas Hendrie conducted a DNA test of the Dong Mo turtle at the Institute of Ecology and Biological Resources. The results showed that the turtle in Dong Mo Lake belongs to the same species with the Hoan Kiem turtle.

According to Prof. Ha Dinh Duc, who has been watching the Hoan Kiem turtle for many years, in 2015 the number of times the turtle rose to the surface fell compared to previous years, with about 10 times each month.

The last time people saw the turtle rise to the surface for nearly two hours to sunbathe was December 21, 2015.

Age of legendary turtle still unknown

In an article posted in a local newspaper many years ago, Prof. Ha Dinh Duc said that the Hoan Kiem turtle was about 700 years old, weighing about 200 kilos.

However, in April 2011, the council in charge of medical treatment for the turtle conducted a DNA analysis and confirmed that the Hoan Kiem turtle was a female and might be more than 100 years old.

Origin of Hoan Kiem turtle

Prof. Duc said that historic books from the Ly Dynasty, during which King Ly Cong Uan moved the capital from Hoa Lu (Ninh Binh province at present) to Thang Long (Hanoi), didn’t mention big turtles in the Luc Thuy Lake (Hoan Kiem). Not Until King Le Loi came to throne did the legend about turtles in Hoan Kiem Lake appear.

“Perhaps King Le Loi brought the turtles from Thanh Hoa (in central Vietnam) to release in Luc Thuy Lake as historical records say that there was a species of giant turtle in Luong River, Lam Kinh (Thanh Hoa). A legend also says that when Le Loi hid from the invaders in Lam Kinh, a big turtle followed to erase his traces.”

The researcher said that if the ancient turtle in Hoan Kiem Lake were from Hanoi, other turtles would be found in lakes in the city. Both West Lake and Hoan Kiem Lake both source from the Cai Co River (Red River).

To determine the origin of the legendary turtle, the Institute for Biological Technology conducted DNA tests in 2004 and concluded that the turtle in Hoan Kiem Lake was a new species of turtle. It belongs to the fresh-water giant soft-shell turtle species.

According to Duc, there was a species of fresh-water giant soft-shell turtle in some lakes which were formed from the Hong, Ma and Da rivers. The Institute for Biological Technology has some specimens.

“Genetic analysis shows that the turtle in Hoan Kiem Lake is unique so I have concluded that the ancient turtle is a new species and named it Rafetus leloii (Le Loi),” Dr. Duc said.

Some turtle researchers including Peter Mayland from Eckerd University and Professor Kraig Adler from Cornell University (USA) agree with Dr. Duc.

Here are photos of the times the turtle rose to the surface of the lake:

At noon, December 21st, 2015.     The morning of January 1, 2015.         On January 1st, 2015.       At 10.30am on December 30th, 2014.     In the morning of December 8th, 2014, with Prof. Ha Dinh Duc.       In the afternoon of March 25th, 2014.       At 11.15am on March 16th, 2014.       In the afternoon of January 15th, 2014.

Compiled by Linh Nhat