Galapagos Giant Tortoise

April 24, 2019

The Galapagos Giant Tortoise is probably the best well known animal of the Galapagos Isles. Giant Tortoises also know as Galapagos tortoises are mainly found in the highlands of Islands like Santa Cruz San Cristobal Isabela and Española.

Galapagos Island Gets 36 Endangered Giant Tortoises Environment The Jakarta Post

The Galápagos tortoise has a very high brown and light green shell.

Galapagos giant tortoise. The Galápagos tortoise also known as the Galápagos giant tortoise is the 13th heaviest reptile alive today and the largest existing of the species. The Galapagos Giant Tortoise is one of the longest-lived wild species - over 100 years on average. Giant tortoises are endemic to Galapagos with 15 subspecies recorded around the archipelago.

However while it is the longest living vertebrate and one of the largest reptiles in the world it is also one of the rarest. In biodiversity and environmental studies at the University of Málaga Málaga Spain. Galapagos comes from the Spanish galapago which means tortoise.

Is the director of the of the Galapagos Conservancys Giant Tortoise Restoration Initiative. Upon the wide ocean extending from the coast of Ecuador leafy rafts drifted Galapagos-bound some 6-7 million years ago carrying upon them the Giant of the Enchanted Islands. The giant tortoise arrived in Galapagos from mainland South America 2-3 million years ago where they underwent diversification into 14 species differing in their morphology and distribution.

Male tortoises can weigh over 500lb230kg When they are threatened the tortoises pull their heads inside the shell exhaling with a hiss sound There are thought to only be 15000 pairs Galapagos Tortoises in. GALAPAGOS GIANT TORTOISE The Galapagos giant tortoise Chelonoidis nigra is the largest living tortoise species. They come in two types - saddleback shelled and dome shelled - and both variants have a dull grey-brown shell and scaly grey coloured skin.

Theory or myth one way or another the Galapagos giant tortoise made its way to history. The Giant Galapagos tortoise or Chelonoidis nigra is a species of reptile endemic to the Galapagos Islands and does not appear anywhere else in the world. Job done prolific Galapagos giant tortoise Diego is being released back into the wild after being credited by authorities with almost single-handedly saving his species from extinction.

The Galapagos Giant Tortoise can grow to be 5 feet tall this makes them the largest tortoises in the world. Galapagos giant tortoises are the largest living tortoises in the world and are only native to the Galapagos Islands according to the World Wildlife Fund which lists the giant tortoises as. These monstrous reptiles weigh up to 550 pounds and can live for up to 150 years easily passing 100.

Weighing up to 250kg 550 pounds and numbering perhaps 200000 before humans discovered the islands their huge size led 16th-century Spanish explorers to apply their Spanish name to the whole archipelago. It is possible though perhaps unlikely that among the remaining giant tortoises of the Galápagos Islands there exists an old-timer that was a hatchling at the. However giant tortoise are also often seen on lower elevations during the warm wet season.

He received his masters degree in conservation of tropical biodiversity from San Pablo University CEU Sevilla Spain and is pursuing his PhD. Three dozen endangered giant tortoises born and raised in captivity have been released into the wild on one of the Galapagos islands where their. The Galapagos giant tortoise is one of the most famous animals of the Islands with the Archipelago itself being named after them Galapágo is an old Spanish word for tortoise.

Galapagos Giant Tortoises keep growing until they are about 40 50 years old and can reach a weight of 500 pounds. It blends in very well with its surroundings. The Galapagos Giant Tortoise is perhaps the most well-known species in the Galapagos Islands and not without reason.

Giant Tortoise Who Helped Save Species Retires In Galapagos Islands