Month: May 2021

3 dozen vulnerable giant land turtles, born and raised in the Galapagos park breeding project, have been unveiled to the highlands on San Cristobal in the Galapagos chain, in which their species is from.

Distribution around the archipelago: Giant tortoises location map in Galapagos

The Galapagos Park Authority reported the 36 creatures have been released on the east portion of San Cristobal island, in which an believed six,seven-hundred giant tortoises roam in their natural habitat.

The latest released individuals are categorized as the Chelonoidis chathamensis subspecies-one of 15 subspecies unique to the Galapagos, the place Charles Darwin's observation of wildlife and land turtles on distinct micro-environments led to his theory of adaptation.

The young ones are within 6 and eight yrs age-old, and have a bodyweight in between 3 and five kilograms (6.6-11 lbs) every.

The critters required time in quarantine and were examined for illness and harmful bacteria right before their liberation so as not to put at risk the remainder of the endemics, the park claimed.

The Global Union for Preservation of Nature (IUCN) lists Chelonoidis chathamensis, or Chatham land turtle, as endangered , though their figures are rising.

The slow-breeding critters can are living towards the chronilogical age of about a hundred or 150 and they are native on the Galapagos Islands within the Pacific Ocean off South America's coastline.

In accordance to the IUCN, the San Cristobal Giant Tortoise populace went through "catastrophic decline" due to the arrival of predators, opponents and vegetation change – from about 24,000 animals until recently to around 500-700 during the early seventies.

By 2016, the numbers had grown considerably to about six,seven hundred.

During the last 8 years, 75 of the original Chatham tortoises, bred in captivity, are actually reintroduced to to their original home.

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Leandro Vaca a traveler that went for a day excursion to the coast of San Cristobal island in the Galapagos archipelago, made the hike to Cerro Brujo beach. His desire was to enjoy swimming with sea lions, colorful reef fish, sea turtles and even some white tiped reef shark.

He was prepared to capture pictures along the way as he expected to encounter marine iguanas, Darwin finches, flycatchers, mockingbirds, blue footed boobies and also herons throughout the path to the shore.

Little did he anticipate what he may find… a giant tortoise, not a marine turtle, but a giant land tortoise at the coastline going in to the sea. The legendary reptile was going in to the water for a dip, probably to cool off and refresh itself from the hot temperature, after all it's the warm season in the isles. The peaceful giant went into the ocean and swam around the bay before going back to land.Leandro was nice enough to take pictures and share them to the world – check them out on facebook:

Giant tortoise swimming

It has for some time been a subject un answered to science, the way tortoises turned up at the archipelago, long believed to be unskilled to swim. Natureonce more provides us an answer to life's secrets…

The Galapagos tortoises are famous animals, typically surviving for more than 100 years and having a weight of as great as 400kg. They’re only to be found around the Galapagos archipelago in the Pacific Ocean, roughly one thousand km away from the most adjacent mainland area, Ecuador. So researchers have many years elaborated theories over how they got there in the first place.

In the early 19th Century, some considered that mariners had relocated the land turtles to the Galapagos Islands out of the Mascarene Archipelago in the Indian Ocean. On the other hand, due to DNA exams, we now realize that the heritage of Galapagos tortoises has come from South America.

In the late 1800s, palaeontology scientist Georg Baur thought that the animals have to have moved over an ancient land link. They couldn’t have gone through an ocean, he thought, due to the fact tortoises were deemed to be poor in the water. But then, in 1923, naturalist William Beebe cast one off bow of a vessel! Thankfully, the tortoise had been a skilful swimmer, directing itself actively and extending its throat upwards to take in air. However a week immediately after the trial, it perished. Beebe considered it had ingested a lot of sea water, so he learned the concept of a tortoise swimming from Ecuador all the way to Islands just too far from reality.

All things considered, it required two groups of facts to close the idea for a Team Swim. During the mid-20th Century, research on geology and tectonics verified how the Galapagos Isles happened to be generated by underwater volcano events. The islands raised from the ocean. There under no circumstances happened to be land stretch bridging the islands and the South American landmass. And in 2004, a land tortoise from Aldabra, in the Indian Ocean, stepped onto a shore in Tanzania, Africa, right after swimming (and/or drifting) for 750 km. It was bony and covered in barnacles, but in every other aspect ok.