Galapagos Tortoises
Did you know that tortoises arrived on the Galápagos’ islands about 3 million years ago?
Holding the record for being the world’s largest tortoise, with some specimens exceeding 5 feet in length and reaching an incredible 550 pounds! They now only
live naturally on two remote archipelagos: the Galápagos 1000 km due west of mainland Ecuador, and Aldabra in the Indian Ocean, 700 km east of Tanzania. The Galápagos tortoise is the longest-lived vertebrate.
Fun Fact Friday - Galapagos Tortoises
Charles Darwin took 3 large tortoises from the Galapagos islands in 1836.
Charles Darwin called Galapagos tortoises “inhabitants of some other planet.”
The Oldest Galapagos tortoise lived to be 152
Read a great artile here on New Scientist about the extinct species of Galapagos giant tortoise that may be resurrected.