How long do Galapagos tortoises live? Elephant turtle. Habitat and Interesting Facts of the Giant Tortoise

Elephant turtle, or galapagos tortoise - one of the largest modern land turtles. At one time, they played the role of “living canned food”, allowing sailors to eat for a long time during their travels fresh meat. This was one of the reasons for the sharp decline in the number of turtles.

Elephant tortoises live on the islands of the Galapagos archipelago. There are 12 known subspecies, both fairly small ones that live on small islands, and giant animals that inhabit large islands. Males are usually larger than females. The head of Galapagos tortoises is relatively small and their necks are long. The mass of turtles living on big islands, can reach 200 kilograms, and the length of the shell is 1.2 meters. Smaller subspecies reach a mass of 27 kilograms (females) and 50 kilograms (males) and have a specific saddle-shaped shell. The lack of predators that pose a threat to elephant tortoises has led to the fact that they have a shell that is wide open in front. But thanks to such a shell, the reptiles received an excellent opportunity to reach very distant branches that had not yet been gnawed by other animals, which, given the large number of elephant turtles, became very relevant. There is probably another explanation for the unusual structure of the shell: its “openness” allows animals living in hot conditions to better regulate their body temperature. It is interesting that sailors collected mainly smaller and, accordingly, more transportable females, and animal catchers made every effort to deliver the largest specimens to zoos. As a result, there were almost no females in the collections.

Galapagos tortoises are diurnal and feed on plants, including those that are poisonous to other animals. Turtles do not refuse carrion either. When not eating, turtles spend the time in liquid mud, escaping the heat and blood-sucking insects. At night, turtles dig shallow holes in which they hide the back part of their body.

The breeding season lasts almost all year round During this period, females lay up to 22 eggs (this is a lot for land turtles; the fertility of most of them is less than a dozen eggs, often one or two). Under favorable conditions, the female can lay two clutches. The holes in which turtles lay their eggs have a depth and diameter of about 30 centimeters. Females have long visited the same convenient places to lay eggs; as a result, the soil here is mixed with the remains of the shell. During the breeding season, animals behave extremely aggressively, and males can even engage in fights with females: turtles hit each other with their shells and bite. The dueling pose is characteristic: each turtle tries to extend its neck as much as possible in order to bite the opponent on the back of the head. The defeated individual retreats from the scene of the fight with maximum speed, accessible to the turtle. Scientists have developed methods for restoring the number of elephant turtles, up to artificial insemination females Galapagos tortoises are more commonly found in zoos. Due to their size (carapace length is up to 122 centimeters), they are hardly suitable for private collections.

"Land turtles." A.N.Gurzhiy
No part of the article may be reproduced without written permission from the author and the Delta M publishing house.

I dedicate this post to the memory of Lonesome George, the last representative of a rare subspecies of armored reptiles - the Abingdon elephant tortoise. Lonesome George died yesterday in Galapagos National Park, where he had lived since 1972.
Sad news. An ENTIRE subspecies of the giant elephant tortoise has disappeared from the face of the Earth forever. In nature there are practically no predators for which these reptiles could become prey. Only humans actively destroyed elephant turtles. It is bitter to realize that the true culprit of this tragedy was once again Homo sapience - Homo sapiens!!! You already begin to doubt the latter, analyzing the activities of the human race from its inception to this day. Now we have no choice but to mourn our own sacrifice.

Lonesome George, the last male giant elephant tortoise at the age of one hundred, died in the Galapagos Islands.

The most died in the Galapagos famous turtle(photo: noblebrute.com)

Lonesome George, the last and only member of the Abingdon elephant tortoise subspecies, died on Sunday, June 24, according to Galapagos National Park officials.

This morning, a park ranger came to check on George, but found that his body was motionless and he was unresponsive to his surroundings. His life has come to an end, said the head of the Galapagos National Park, Edwin Naula.

George was found on Pinta Island in 1972 and since then he has gained the reputation of being the “symbol” of the Galapagos Islands, located in Ecuador.

Thousands of tourists came to Ecuador to see George (photo: noblepride.com)

Every year, thousands of tourists came to the island specifically to admire “the most famous bachelor in the world.”

A book was also written about George - Lonesome George: The Life and Loves of the World's Most Famous Turtle. The author of a popular science book dedicated to huge turtle, became Henry Nichols.

Yana Shebalina, Life News Online
01:23, Monday June 25, 2012
http://lifenews.ru/news/95353

And now we are about to get acquainted with the “biography” of an elephant turtle. So...

The elephant tortoise is a real giant among all representatives of the order. This animal is considered a rare species today due to the fact that at one time it was the only food available to seafarers.
Sailors of the XXVI-XXVII centuries said that countless numbers of elephant turtles were found on the islands of Mauritius, Madagascar, Reunion, as well as throughout the Galapagos archipelago. They gathered in huge herds of 2000 - 3000 animals. Ships that sailed to India always stopped near these islands to stock up on elephant turtles. At the same time, several hundred animals were loaded on board at once. For 20 to 30 years, many captains collected elephant turtles for sale. As a consequence of this, in early XIX centuries, elephant tortoises remained only in Madagascar and the Galapagos Islands. By the way, the Galapagos Islands were once called the Turtle Islands, and now the elephant tortoise is sometimes called the Galapagos tortoise.

Among the elephant tortoises there are giants that reach a weight of 400 kg and a shell length of more than a meter. In nature there are practically no predators for which these reptiles could become prey. Perhaps only people actively destroyed elephant turtles. And for the same reason, today they are forced to protect the significantly reduced numbers of these reptiles.

The absence of danger to some extent determined the appearance of the elephant tortoise. Its shell resembles a saddle and is wide open at the front. Due to this openness, the elephant tortoise is able to regulate its body temperature in the hot climate of the Galapagos Islands, where it lives. Male elephant tortoises are noticeably larger than females and, due to their size, have always been interesting objects for zoos. But today all subspecies of this animal, of which there are about 16, are included in the IUCN Red List. Interestingly, the elephant turtle sometimes chooses plants that are poisonous to other animals as food. Undoubtedly, this animal can rightfully be called the main attraction of the Galapagos Islands. Charles Darwin noted how interesting it is to observe the behavior of elephant turtles. In particular, he described such an unusual feature of the animal as deafness. The scientist did not explain whether elephant tortoises really have hearing problems, but said that the animal does not hear the steps of a person who meets a tortoise and is following it and is not frightened until the pursuer comes into its field of vision.

Other names

Chelonoidis elephant opus is the name of the elephant turtle species, derived from the Latin. Chelonoidis (genus of land turtles).
Testudo elephant opus – the name is derived from the Latin. Testudines (order turtles) and Testudinidae (family turtles).
Geochelone elephant opus, Chelonoidis nigra, Geochelone nigra, Testudo nigra – lat. species names in combination with lat. nigra (black), a character referring to the predominantly dark color of the elephant tortoise's shell.
Galápagos giant tortoise, Galápagos tortoise – English. Galapagos tortoise.
The Galapagos tortoise is another well-known habitat name.

Classification

Kingdom: Animals
Type: Chordata
Subphylum: Vertebrates
Class: Reptiles
Squad: Turtles
Suborder: Hidden-necked turtles
Family: Land turtles
Genus: American Land
turtles
Species: Elephant turtle
Subspecies: abingdonii (Abingdonian), becki (Rothschild's tortoise), chathamensis (Chatham's tortoise), darvini (Darwin's tortoise), ephippium (Pinzon's tortoise), duncanensis (Duncan's), galopagoensis (Charles Island tortoise), guentheri (Gunther's tortoise), hoodensis ( Hispaniola), microphyes (Isabel), nigrita (Black), phantastica (Fernandina Island tortoise), porteri (Santacruz tortoise), vandenburghi (Vandenburg's tortoise), vicina (Cave), wallacei (Jervis).

Habitat

A rare, in fact, endangered species of elephant tortoise today is preserved only in the Galapagos Islands in Pacific Ocean, off the coast of Ecuador ( South America) and also on the territory of Aldabra Island, which is a national park and located in Indian Ocean. The areas inhabited by elephant tortoises are characterized by a hot, dry climate and sparse vegetation. This is mainly sparse grass cover and sparse shrubs and trees. You can meet elephant tortoises in tropical deciduous forests, on shrub plains and savannas, as well as in the lowlands of the Galapagos Islands, covered with solidified lava. In search of fresh water and accessible vegetation, these reptiles are able to climb winding paths leading to volcanic highlands. Female elephant turtles prefer the sandy lowlands of the coast, since it is most convenient for them to lay eggs, but males climb high on the mountain slopes, since the vegetation there is lush and the air is humid. By the way, elephant turtles living in the lowlands tend to make long journeys in search of sources of fresh water and even trample noticeable paths to them, along which people later found this water.
As already mentioned, 16 subspecies of elephant turtles are known, and their habitat is usually limited to one of the islands. And a hint about which one is often contained in the name of the subspecies. For example, the Abingdon tortoise is found on the island. Abingdon (Pinta), mainly in rocky, rugged terrain where volcanic rocks come to the surface. The Rothschild's tortoise has chosen the uneven, bush-covered northern and western slopes of the Wolf Island volcano. Isabela. The Chatham elephant tortoise is easy to find in the northeastern grasslands of the island. Santa Cristobal. Darwin's turtle is found on the rocks of. San Salvador at an altitude of 200 to 700 m above sea level. Pinzon's turtle lives in narrow grassy areas on the southwestern slope of the volcano. Gunther's elephant tortoises inhabit mountain system Sierra Negro in the southeast of Isabela Island, but also found on dry plains with rare cacti and trees. The habitat of the Hispaniola tortoise is, respectively, the rocks of the island of Hispaniola. Isabelskaya is found within the dry slopes of the Darwin volcano on the island. Isabela. The population of the Black Elephant Turtle settled in the clearings of the island. Santa Cruz and, by the way, is considered the most numerous among all subspecies. The turtles of Fernandina Island live, accordingly, on its volcanic slopes. The Vandenburg elephant tortoise has spread not only along the slopes of the Aldero volcano on the island. Albemarle, but also occupied its crater. And finally, the elephant cave turtle chose the Sierra Azul volcano in the south of the island as its habitat. Isabela.

Description

Elephant turtles are quite slow animals. During the day they travel no more than 6 km. Female elephant tortoises lay 10 to 14 eggs in small holes and do not take any further care of them.

During the day, elephant tortoises are very careful, but at night they pay absolutely no attention to anything, which is why they appear blind and deaf.

We have already mentioned that the elephant tortoise is a giant of amazing size. Its shell can reach 120 cm in length and 60 cm in height. Average weight equals 100 kg. And the approximate life expectancy is 150 years. However, the name of the elephant turtle is due not only to its size, but also appearance. To support the heavy and massive body, the reptile is equipped with powerful column-shaped legs, indeed, reminiscent of an elephant’s. And her skin on the limbs and neck protruding from under the shell is very reminiscent of the thick rubbery epidermis of an elephant. The upper shield of the elephant tortoise's shell has a special saddle-shaped shape - at the back it drops low and bends slightly upward, and at the front, on the contrary, it is raised high, so that the front legs and the long thin neck of the reptile remain practically unprotected. Males have more a long tail with a clear pattern.
The different subspecies of elephant tortoises differ mainly in the size and shape of their shell. On this basis, scientists classified them into two groups. The smallest individuals of elephant tortoises live on small, arid islands and have longer, thin legs. Their shell clearly follows the shape of the saddle, and their weight is about 25-50 kg. In areas with more humid climate and elephant turtles are larger. They have a tall, dome-like shell. Zoologists suggest that thanks to this shape of the carpax, elephant turtles easily penetrate into any plant jungle. On the dorsal shield of these reptiles there is a noticeable pattern in the form of polygons located inside each other, by the number of sides of which the age of the animal can be calculated. Most active The elephant turtle displays during the day, and at night hides the back part of its body in a hole specially dug for this purpose. The reptile finds salvation from the heat and insects during the day by burying itself in silt or liquid mud.

Elephant turtles feed on plants and drink a lot of water. If there is no water near their pasture, elephant turtles do not go to a watering hole every day, but store water in bladder and consume it as needed.

Since the living conditions of elephant turtles are not the most favorable, they are quite unpretentious in their diet. The largest part of the diet is plant food - leaves of shrubs and grass on volcanic slopes, succulent cacti that replace water for turtles, woody lichens and leaves, low-hanging berries and fruits, aquatic vegetation, algae. The main delicacy for elephant turtles is tomatoes. Living in arid areas, the reptile can go for a long time without water and food. However, if the elephant turtle finds a source of fresh water, it will drink it little by little for a long time, burying itself in the mud in the shallows. Among the plants that elephant tortoises enjoy eating are stinging nettles and various thorny bushes that do not cause them any harm. Animal food for the reptile most often becomes a variety of carrion found.

Many sailors said that elephant turtles sometimes starved on board for up to 18 months, and upon arrival at the port they turned out to be completely healthy and viable. There are cases where elephant turtles lived in captivity for 100 -150 years

In the terrarium, it is recommended to feed the elephant turtle with plant foods. In general, this giant is rarely kept at home; it is more often found in various national parks or zoos. There, a completely balanced diet is created for the elephant turtle, mainly plant-based with a small addition of animal protein.

In order for the mating of elephant turtles to be successful, nature has provided special tricks in the structure of the males. In particular, they have a small recess on the lower part of the shell, which allows them to climb onto the female’s shell and stay on it. If fertilization has occurred, then the female elephant turtle is preparing to lay eggs. Every year she is able to lay eggs in the same pre-selected warm and safe place. Sometimes the female first digs several nests in different places in order to then choose the most suitable one from them. In search of a suitable laying site, females often make real trips around the islands. The number of eggs in an elephant tortoise's clutch is approximately 2-20 each year between November and April. Moreover, she puts them in the prepared nest very carefully, insuring them with a special enveloping liquid, and then just as carefully sprinkles them with earth. In the nest, turtle eggs will “mature” for a little more than six months - from June to December. And the hatched elephant turtles will dig up the ground and climb to the surface on their own.

Keep a giant elephant tortoise at home because of its huge size does not seem possible. Most often, these reptiles live in various zoos and southern reserves, where spacious enclosures with vegetation and swimming pools are set up for them. Elephant tortoises are bred in captivity specifically to increase the numbers of the endangered species. In conditions wildlife under the supervision of people, it is not difficult to create suitable conditions for these reptiles, because the most they need is sun, warmth and accessibility plant food. The most suitable air temperature for breeding elephant turtles should be +28-+33 degrees Celsius.

And in conclusion, a very short video about an elephant turtle

Testudo elephantopus - the elephant turtle - is considered the largest species of all turtles existing in the world today. An adult weighs about one hundred and fifty to two hundred kilograms. I have met people whose weight reached four hundred kilograms. These reptiles are a rare species. Today there are about sixteen subspecies. All of them are listed in the Red Book.

Galapagos tortoises have a huge shell. Its length reaches one hundred and ten, and its height is about sixty centimeters. The support of a powerful and heavy body is provided by thick columnar legs. The carapace (armored dorsal part) descends quite steeply at the back. In front, it practically does not go down. This leaves a fairly wide opening for the neck (long and relatively thin) and the front legs. The female elephant tortoise is slightly smaller than the male, who also has a longer tail.

In their habitat, these animals are the most prominent representatives. When the Elephant Turtle was discovered in the 17th century, it was quite common in this area. It should be noted that these animals are very easily accessible food. In this regard, pirates and whalers filled the holds of ships with live individuals and set off. An elephant tortoise can live without food or drink for twelve to fourteen months without significantly losing weight. Thus, during their travels, sailors were always provided with fresh meat and were free from hunger and scurvy. However this mass extermination animals led to a significant reduction in population. Rough estimates indicate that about ten million elephant turtles were destroyed over three centuries. At the same time, individuals of medium and small sizes were caught. And these, as a rule, were immature individuals and females, who more often descended to the lowlands to lay eggs.

The meat of elephant turtles was widely consumed. It was salted or used fresh. Turtle oil was used to obtain a wonderful clear oil. In order to see whether the caught individual had enough fat, the skin at the tail was cut. If there was not enough fat, the turtle was released. They say that animals recover fairly quickly from such an “operation.”

The extermination of elephant turtles was very intense during Darwin's time. With the advent of the invention of canned food, the reduction in the whale population, and, at the same time, popularity, interest in turtles as food disappeared completely.

However, after some time, Ecuadorian settlers appeared in the animals’ habitat. They brought goats, dogs, horses, cats, and pigs to the islands. Some representatives of the imported animals went wild and settled on the mountain slopes. Pigs, dogs and cats began to eat turtle eggs. Horses, goats, cows and other herbivores began to destroy vegetation, thus depriving adult turtles of food. The decline in the population during this period was facilitated by the extraction of turtle oil. The settlers caught the largest individuals, from which a particularly large amount of product could be obtained.

Elephant tortoises are brought to many countries. They live there for a hundred years or more. These animals are very unpretentious. They only need sun, warmth, water and an abundance of plant food. It has been observed that elephant turtles are very fond of tomatoes. They strive for any red object, hoping to find their favorite treat in it. Many zoos breed these animals. Thus, very successful work on breeding young individuals is carried out at the San Diego Zoo.

• Superclass Quadrupeds - Tetrapoda, Class Reptiles or Reptiles - Reptilia
• Infraorder Freshwater and land turtles - Testudinoidea

Elephant tortoise or giant Galapagos tortoise - Geochelone elephantopus. Previously, this species was divided into a number of species, now considered subspecies. They all live on different islands of the Galapagos archipelago. A total of 11 subspecies have been described, some of which have apparently already been completely exterminated. 6 subspecies are found on Albermail Island, another 6 on each of the following islands: James, Indefatigable, Duncan, Hood, Chafman, Abingdon. Elephant turtles inhabit tropical broadleaf forests, shrub plains and savannas. All subspecies of the elephant tortoise are listed as endangered on the IUCN Red List.

The situation is most favorable with the population on the island of Santa Cruz, where about a thousand heads are still preserved Geochelone elephatopus nigrita, as well as on Isabela Island, where the subspecies lives Geochelone elephatopus elephantopus.

The length of the elephant tortoise's shell is up to 1 m (and even up to 1.5 m), height - more than 0.5 m. The weight of adult tortoises is 150-200 kg (individuals are known that weighed up to 400 kg). The paws are thick and powerful, columnar, the toes are short, and there are no membranes. The neck is relatively thin. In some subspecies of the elephant tortoise, the carapace drops steeply at the back and curves at the front, forming a saddle-shaped depression, which prevents the turtle from stretching its neck and eating grass that grows above the level of the shell. The carapace is black, hilly, and is often overgrown with lichen, leaving a bizarre pattern on the surface. Males are noticeably larger than females and differ longer tail These turtles live to be a hundred years old.

Giant turtles feed on grass and leaves from bushes. They may eat stinging nettles and the thorny crabapple fruits of the manzanillo tree, which can cut human skin. Specimens that inhabit the warm, dry lava plains of the Galapagos often climb long, winding paths to the volcanic highlands, where there is an abundance of fresh water and vegetation. All elephant tortoises can climb mountains very well. They spend many hours there, drinking water and taking water baths. At night they return down. Paths trampled by thousands of turtles are an integral part of the volcanic landscape. They make these ascents in groups.

This species of turtle is known for internal fertilization. Between January and August, males begin to sniff the air in search of the scent of a female. Having found a female, the male catches up with her and intimidates her into mating. He rams her with the front of her shell and bites her legs until she pulls her bottom into the shell - in this way he immobilizes the female, and then mates. The female lays eggs between June and December; she finds a dry, sunny place in the lowland and lays 10 eggs in a hole, which she then buries with her hind legs. This place becomes unchanged for her throughout her life. Incubation lasts from 3 to 8 months depending on temperature (at high temperature eggs mature faster). Most of young turtles die in the first decade of life.

Giant tortoises have certain habits when it comes to sleeping, feeding, and choosing a nest site. In a zoo, each of their turtles invariably sleeps in its own place. After a 16-hour nap, they leave their beds.

Based on materials from the site http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/.

The elephant tortoise is the most close-up view of turtles existing today.

Reproduction

Elephant turtles lay eggs on land by digging a hole, laying the eggs, and then burying them again. The egg is the size of a tennis ball. Females lay approximately 14-22 eggs; it is very rare for a female to lay 2-4 eggs. In a year, a female can lay eggs 2 times, it all depends on the habitat.

The mating period for the female lasts from February to May, and the laying of eggs lasts from June to September.

Cubs are born after 120-140 days, weighing 70-80 g at birth.

Newly born baby elephant turtle

Juvenile elephant turtle

During the rutting period, males make the sound of a roaring elephant, thereby attracting the attention of females to themselves - which is why they were given the name “elephant turtles”.

In the 60s, the Americans negotiated and wanted to place their military base on this island, which would threaten the disappearance of this rarest species turtles. But the project was rejected, thus saving the rare species of elephant turtles.

Now about 100 thousand elephant turtles live on Aldabra.

Also, the population of this species is studied in many zoos around the world; about 30 wonderful turtles have already been bred at the San Diego Zoo.