Rangers free 300 birds and seize invasive turtles sold for ritual release

Ho Chi Minh City forest rangers inspected shops near An Ha Bridge selling animals for Buddhist release, confiscating 13 invasive red-eared slider turtles and setting roughly 300 munias — small forest birds — free into their natural habitat. In a separate handover, a Tan Son Nhi Ward resident voluntarily surrendered 18 endangered three-striped box turtles, which rangers took into care. Red-eared sliders are invasive and threaten local ecosystems when released; the inspections also aimed to raise public awareness of wildlife protection.