An exotic, but potentially dangerous import

As an expert on amphibians and reptiles, it's hardly surprising that Rao Dingqi's 15-square-meter office at the Kunming Institute of Zoology is packed with weighty tomes relating to turtles, snakes, frogs and other creatures. Several glass cases that sit on and under his desk contain a menagerie of stuffed animals, most of them collected earlier this year.

According to Rao, the best-known animal import from South America is the Brazilian slider, a turtle commonly seen in China and often kept as a pet. "It was firstly introduced to Taiwan, and is very easy to feed because it will eat almost anything, including shrimps, vegetables, fruit, carrion and small fish. It's also very adaptable and can live in temperatures ranging from 10 C to 35 C. These factors have been favorable to the rapid spread of the Brazilian slider in China," Rao said.

The slider was introduced to the Chinese mainland in the 1980s. According to Rao, it quickly became a popular dish in southern parts of the country, but Buddhists also like to buy the slider as a gift for their temples, because saving a life, any life, is a laudable activity.