Galapagos Tortoise

Lore & Background

Spanish explorers, who discovered the islands in the 16th century, named them after the Spanish galápago, meaning 'tortoise'. Charles Darwin's observations of differences in shell size and shape between subspecies on the second voyage of the Beagle in 1835 contributed to the development of his theory of evolution. Tortoise numbers declined from over 250,000 in the 16th century to a low of around 15,000 in the 1970s, due to overexploitation for meat and oil, habitat clearance, and introduction of non-native animals. Conservation efforts have resulted in thousands of captive-bred juveniles being released, and the total number is estimated to have exceeded 19,000 at the start of the 21st century.

In Their Own Story

The decision of the Islands Development Company to evict the Nature Protection Trust of Seychelles from Silhouette island by March 2011, and its refusal to permit wild tortoises to live on the island, forced the trust to remove and find new homes for the tortoises. The privately managed island of Cousine agreed to provide a new home for the Seychelles tortoises. In April 2011, the Seychelles giant tortoises went to Cousine. If had been possible to release them on Silhouette island, they would have established a separate wild population, but now they will be mixed with the Aldabra tortoises that are already on Cousine island. The Nature Protection Trust of Seychelles took consolation from the fact that it could produce a new generation of young tortoises which will live for at least 100 years. In that time, there may be an opportunity to establish pure populations of the tortoises. The animals live longer than short-term management and development plans can provide for.

Reader's Guide

Galápagos tortoises are native to seven of the Galápagos Islands. Shell size and shape vary between subspecies and populations. On islands with humid highlands and abundant low vegetation, the tortoises are larger, with domed shells and short necks; on islands with dry lowlands and less ground-level vegetation, the tortoises are smaller, with 'saddleback' shells and long necks. With lifespans in the wild of over 100 years, it is one of the longest-lived vertebrates. Captive Galapagos tortoises can live up to 177 years.

Did You Know?

• The Galápagos tortoise can weigh up to 417 kg (919 lb).
• A captive individual, Harriet, lived for at least 175 years.
• The last known individual of the Pinta Island subspecies (C. n. abingdonii), named Lonesome George, died in captivity in June 2012.
• The Galápagos tortoise is one of two insular radiations of giant tortoises that still survive to the modern day; the other is Aldabrachelys gigantea of Aldabra and the Seychelles.