Friday, April 19, 1996 | 11:59 a.m.
About 100 hatchling desert tortoises have been stolen from the Clark County Desert Tortoise Center, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service reported.
A substantial reward is being offered by the service for information leading to the conviction of the person or persons responsible for the crime, said Nathan Caldwell, spokesman for the USFWS.
The tortoises were taken from the center about March 15. The center is located on federal property in extreme southwestern Clark County.
The hatchlings are considered federal property, so the theft is a violation of both the Endangered Species Act and the Lacey Act, which prohibits transportation of illegally possessed plants and animals.
The desert tortoise was listed as a threatened species in April 1990. The Fish and Wildlife Service initiated the listing after a sharp decline in desert tortoise populations occurred in the Southwest, including Nevada, California, Arizona and Utah.
Research has indicated that part of the reason the tortoises declined was a rapid spread of upper respiratory tract disease. The infection may have been introduced to wild tortoises by illegal release of infected captive tortoises.
Anyone with information can call the USFWS's Division of Law Enforcement, 702-388-6380. Callers do not have to give their names.
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