Douglas Hendrie - Turtle Project Coordinator.

Contact dhendrie@fpt.vn

Character Description

Douglas combines practical efficiency and diligence, deep love of and interest in Chelonians with a warmth of heart for his fellow human. He respects all people as potential conservationists and holds a deep regard for Vietnam, its people and their ecology.

Background information

I grew up on a pond in the suburbs of Boston and spent countless hours

wading about along its edges catching frogs and turtles. This led to small

kidney-shaped plastic bowls, complete with fake island and palm tree for an

endless supply of pet store or local hatchlings, most of which died. As my

swimming got better and I was permitted to take out the family canoe,

I began to master the art of catching turtles.

Of course, the most adventuresome captures were large snapping turtles

(Chelydra serpentina). As other kids got baseball gloves and hot-wheels

for Christmas, I was always hoping for hip boots and the ultimate net.

I also began spending summers out at Mount Holyoke University with the Dean

of Biology, a woman by the name of Isabel Sprague. She was an aquatic

entomologist by trade and took me along as she explored wetlands, streams,

and ponds in western Massachusetts. Naturally, I also got my hip boots and

"ultimate net". She gave me a copy of then-turtle-God Archie Carr's

Handbook on "Turtles of the United States", and suggested I learn the Latin

names. I accepted the book but secretly had no intention of learning the

stupid unpronounceable names that scientists tack on to turtles that could

much more easily be described by their spots, or color, or bite.

My interest in aquatic wildlife, particularly turtles, grew progressively as

I got older. By college I had bred spotted turtles in captivity, was

rescuing snapping turtle eggs from raccoons every June, releasing hatchlings

in ponds and rivers, and documenting the behavior of the few turtles I kept

in captivity.

While my professional life did not meet up with turtles until some time much

later, my interests remained keen throughout most of my life, my free time

always spent wading about with a net in whatever stream, pond, or wetland

was within reach.

After completing my undergraduate degree in International Relations with a

Middle East focus, and several stints in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, I

worked in Washington DC running the official Saudi Press Agency. Although I

found the Middle East to be an addictive and fascinating interest, free time

was always spent in the West Virginia countryside photographing and marking

wood turtle populations or exploring the Potomac River and wetlands along

the shores of Maryland. Gradually, I found myself spending less time at embassy

functions and press conferences, and more time knee-deep in mud. A few

graduate courses at the US Department of Agriculture's Graduate School in

ecology, aquatic systems, and at last, herpetology finally brought me to the

decision to leave the politics of Washington and earn my masters in Wetland

Conservation and Management at the University of Massachusetts.

It was at U-Mass, after a preparatory year of hard science at the

University of Vermont, that finally caught me up on the academic front and brought me to

par with my lifelong interests in turtles. Through the assistance of an old

college friend from my Middle East days, I was able to do my master's thesis

in Vietnam on the Aquatic Resources of Cuc Phuong National Park. This

naturally led me to my present position managing the project.

In Vietnam, I was first exposed to turtles in the trade when provincial

rangers requested our assistance in identifying several species of civets

that had been seized in a trade bust. When I arrived at the provincial

capitol, I was astonished to find hundreds and hundreds of turtles in sacks

and crates. The civets went with us, while the primates and pheasants that

had been confiscated went with other specialized conservation programs. But

the turtles went on to China. Subsequent investigation indicated that the

illegal trade in turtles was substantial in Vietnam and that there was no

interest or effort underway in the country to deal with this devastating drain on its

chelonian fauna. Naturally, this is how a life-long turtle enthusiast became involved

in turtles in Vietnam.

Three years later, we have formed the foundation of a growing conservation

program aimed at safeguarding Indochinese turtle species for the future,

through an ambitious multifaceted approach to species conservation. Our

end-goal is to develop the same sort of interest in turtles that I have

developed over my lifetime amongst a handful of Vietnamese nationals, though

skipping the kidney-shaped plastic turtle bowls part.

- Douglas Hendrie March 2,000.

Some quick facts

Born 1960

Massachusetts, USA

Education

Undergraduate degree: International Relations - Middle East

The American University, Washington DC

Graduate degree: Wetland Conservation and Management, University of

Massachusetts

Other education: US Department of Agriculture Graduate School

University of Vermont: One year core science prep for graduate school at

U-Mass.

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