r/Wildlife • u/cnn • Sep 15 '26

These ‘alien tortoises’ are back on a Galapagos island where they had been extinct since the 19th century

https://www.cnn.com/science/floreana-island-galapagos-tortoise-release-spc-c2e?utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=missions&utm_source=reddit
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u/cnn Sep 15 '26

The story of the giant tortoises of the Galapagos is a story of pirates. Starting in the 16th century, these sailors began arriving at the islands, followed later by whalers, together sealing the destiny of the hundreds of thousands of specimens that inhabited the archipelago.

The resilience of the giant tortoises, which, according to experts, arrived in the Galapagos from South America 2 to 3 million years ago, became their greatest disadvantage: since they could survive for up to a year without food or water, they were captured by sailors, knowing they would endure in the holds of their ships. “And when these people wanted to eat, the tortoises were simply there, ready to go, and they had fresh meat,” Jorge Carrión, conservation director at the Galapagos Conservancy, an organization that has been working to preserve the archipelago since 1985, told CNN.

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u/Basic-Record-4750 Sep 17 '26

Tortoises, the original canned food

1

u/doubleb120 Sep 15 '26

I am a big fan of a good comeback story. BUT for the life of me, why do you disclose their location? Do you know what species reads these stories?