Missing Galapagos Tortoise Likely Still Alive, Study Says

A giant tortoise thought to have been hunted to extinction more than 150 years ago — and whose distinctive saddle-shaped shell helped inspire Charles Darwin’s theory of natural selection — may still be living in remote parts of the Galápagos Islands, according to a new study. READ MORE





Using blood samples from 1,600 tortoises, researchers found that 84 animals, including the tortoise in this photo, had the genetic signature of the Chelonoidis elephantopus, long thought to be extinct. Researchers say the evidence suggests that one of the hybrid tortoises’ parents were purebred members of the missing species. (Yale University)

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