Santa Cruz Island
Every time I watch the Galapagos giant tortoises I can not avoid feeling thrown back in time. These giant reptiles constitute real vestiges from the past. Giant tortoises were roaming freely in many regions around the world for the last thirty million years. With the appearance of big predators during prehistoric times, their populations were little by little drastically reduced to extinction. In only two isolated archipelagos in the world can we still be amazed with their presence. The most famous of them is the Galapagos Islands. The second one is found close to Madagascar in Africa, specifically in the Seychelles islands, on Aldabra. There are similarities and differences among these remaining populations. Both species of giant tortoises share the same genus, Geochelone that literally means “land turtles.” The advantage of the Galapagos giant tortoises is that they represent a great example of adaptive radiation through evolution. Nowhere on the planet can the remarkable variety of wonderful shell shapes be found except on the Galapagos. While on the Seychelles there is only one species, on the Galapagos there are eleven living subspecies. Some subspecies are enormous and dome-like in form, whilst some are smaller with the anterior edge of the carapace arching upward. The latter are called saddlebacks due to their peculiar shape and are unique amongst all known tortoises anywhere in the world.
The Galapagos giant tortoises represent a last view of an already past prehistoric world. Extraordinary reptiles on remote oceanic islands, proud relics from ancient times that let us have the privilege to observe them in their natural habitat.
Every time I watch the Galapagos giant tortoises I can not avoid feeling thrown back in time. These giant reptiles constitute real vestiges from the past. Giant tortoises were roaming freely in many regions around the world for the last thirty million years. With the appearance of big predators during prehistoric times, their populations were little by little drastically reduced to extinction. In only two isolated archipelagos in the world can we still be amazed with their presence. The most famous of them is the Galapagos Islands. The second one is found close to Madagascar in Africa, specifically in the Seychelles islands, on Aldabra. There are similarities and differences among these remaining populations. Both species of giant tortoises share the same genus, Geochelone that literally means “land turtles.” The advantage of the Galapagos giant tortoises is that they represent a great example of adaptive radiation through evolution. Nowhere on the planet can the remarkable variety of wonderful shell shapes be found except on the Galapagos. While on the Seychelles there is only one species, on the Galapagos there are eleven living subspecies. Some subspecies are enormous and dome-like in form, whilst some are smaller with the anterior edge of the carapace arching upward. The latter are called saddlebacks due to their peculiar shape and are unique amongst all known tortoises anywhere in the world.
The Galapagos giant tortoises represent a last view of an already past prehistoric world. Extraordinary reptiles on remote oceanic islands, proud relics from ancient times that let us have the privilege to observe them in their natural habitat.
