PHNOM PENH, March 21 (Xinhua) -- Conservationists have found 20 nests of the endangered Asian giant softshell turtle with 663 eggs on sandbars along the Mekong River in northeast Cambodia's Kratie province in the nesting season this year, a Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) statement said Wednesday.

The Asian giant softshell turtle (Pelochelys cantorii) is listed on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List as globally endangered. It was thought to be extinct in the Cambodian portion of the Mekong River until its re-discovery in 2007 in a 48-km stretch of the river in Kratie and Stung Treng provinces.

The statement said illegal collection of eggs and capture of adults for consumption and sale still continues that is putting this species at high risk of extinction.

"In total, we have found 35 nests, but eggs of 15 nests were already illegally taken away when we arrived," Nguon Chanti, WCS project coordinator for the Asian Giant Softshell Turtle Project, said. "We are now protecting 20 nests with 663 eggs until they hatch. Four community members are now working hard to protect these nests."

According to Chanti, as of March, 132 turtles have hatched from the protected nests.

Ouk Vibol, director of Fisheries Conservation Department of the Cambodia's Fisheries Administration, said market demand leads to illegal egg and adult collection of Asian giant softshell turtle along the Mekong River.

"This is a big concern for this species conservation," he said. "Increasing awareness on the endangered fisheries species as well as participation in conservation from local authorities and communities is a very good solution to protect the species for next generation."

He called on the people to help protect the species by not buying and eating its eggs and meat.