Lonesome George, the last remaining giant tortoise of his subspecies, Chelonoidis nigra abingdoni, died on Sunday. He is believed to have been at least 100 years old. George was first sighted on the Galápagos island of Pinta in the early 1970s. Until that time, his subspecies had been considered extinct. Thereafter, George became a symbol of the Galápagos Islands and of the plight of endangered species. The giant tortoises of the Galápagos helped inspire Charles Darwin's theory of evolution but overhunting and habitat destruction have since brought them to the brink of extinction. DiscussGalápagos Tortoise Lonesome George Has Died
Read the original article at In the News
June 26, 2012 By Leave a Comment
Lonesome George, the last remaining giant tortoise of his subspecies, Chelonoidis nigra abingdoni, died on Sunday. He is believed to have been at least 100 years old. George was first sighted on the Galápagos island of Pinta in the early 1970s. Until that time, his subspecies had been considered extinct. Thereafter, George became a symbol of the Galápagos Islands and of the plight of endangered species. The giant tortoises of the Galápagos helped inspire Charles Darwin's theory of evolution but overhunting and habitat destruction have since brought them to the brink of extinction. Discuss