Former Sul Ross zoologist helps rediscover turtle thought to be extinct

Dr. Steven G. Platt, a former professor of Biology at Sul Ross State University, published an extensive study of a rare turtle in Myanmar in May.

The Burmese Roofed Turtle (Batagur trivittata) was once widespread and abundant in Myanmar. By the late 1990s the species was considered extinct until it was “rediscovered” during the early 2000s. The investigation relied heavily on the traditional ecological knowledge of villagers living along the rivers. The researchers visited 243 villages, towns and encampments, interviewed more than 1,400 people and discovered the species was now restricted to 21 km of one river, a news release said.

A captive breeding group was established in 2004 in Mandalay with five females and three males, resulting in population exceeding 1,000. As of late 2023, the Burmese Roofed Turtle is no longer considered at high risk of biological extinction.

Dr. Platt is an Associate Conservation Herpetologist with the Wildlife Conservation Society-Myanmar Program and the Turtle Survival Alliance. He received his Bachelor of Science in Forestry and Wildlife Management from Louisiana State University and his Master of Science from Southeastern Louisiana University. Following an internship and crocodile research in Australia, he began his doctoral degree at Clemson University and his dissertation on Morelet’s crocodile in Belize.

Dr. Platt taught in the SRSU Department of Biology from 2006-2011, when he and his wife, Dr. Kalyar Platt, were offered a joint appointment from the WCS to work in Myanmar and in other areas of Southeast Asia.