The Asian giant soft-shell turtle is a large freshwater species that has lived on earth for 175 million years. [Photo/WeChat account: ls-mnews]

Four Asian giant soft-shell baby turtles were hatched on Aug 31 in Qingtian county – administered by Lishui city in East China's Zhejiang province.

The rare Asian giant soft-shell turtle, or Pelochelys cantorii, is a large freshwater species that has lived on earth for 175 million years. It has been listed as a first class protected animal in China and its numbers are far less than those of the giant panda.

In 2000, China's first – and to date only – provincial-level Asian giant soft-shell turtle reserve was established in Qingtian.

Since then, Qingtian has attached great importance to the protection of the species. It has cooperated with the Zhejiang Institute of Freshwater Fisheries, the Pearl River Fisheries Research Institute in Guangzhou city – in South China's Guangdong province – and with other research institutes and companies, to carry out artificial reproduction of the turtle and to establish reserve areas.

On July 4 this year, a female turtle named Bei Bei laid 29 eggs. In order to ensure their natural hatching, only six of them were incubated in a temperature control incubator in the turtle breeding station in Qingtian.

After 59 days of hatching, four baby turtles successfully broke through their shells. According to staff members at the station, the other eggs are still under observation and may hatch soon.