A man is being investigated for keeping 27 endangered tortoises at his Valencia home.
The Guardia Civil visited the property and discovered the animals.
25 were from the species known as Testudo Graeca(Greek or Blackberry turtle) which is present in the Mediterranean area and North Africa.
The other two were examples of the African spurred tortoise which is the largest mainland species in the world.
It is native to the Sahara desert and is found in many northern and central African countries.
It’s not been disclosed how the 38-year-old man obtained the tortoises or whether he was running an illegal breeding farm.
The two species are protected under Spanish law and are also on the list of threatened species.
A special licence is required to possess them and the man could not produce any documents to the Guardia Civil.
The tortoises were removed and are being cared for at the El Saler Wild Fauna Recovery Centre in Valencia.
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