This animal, extinct in the wild, just hatched at a Kansas zoo

WICHITA, Kan. (KSNW) — A rare species of turtle that is extinct in the wild has just been born at the Sedgwick County Zoo.

The Zoo says the McCord’s Box Turtle’s hatching is a milestone for the zoo and for conservation efforts underway to save the species. The McCord’s Box Turtle is believed to be extinct in the wild.

The last recorded sighting of the turtle in the wild was in 2010, according to the Turtle Survival Alliance. The reptile was native to the Guangxi region of China and lived in bamboo patches in forests, shallow wetlands, and streams.

The destruction of its habitat and its being sought after as a pet, for food, and for traditional Chinese medicine contributed to its extinction in the wild.

It is named for Herpotoligist William Patrick McCord. The Sedgwick County Zoo is one of many zoos participating in conservation efforts to save the McCord Box Turtle.