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Pinta Island tortoise

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"Lonesome George" redirects here. For the comedian, see George Gobel. For the musician, see George Thorogood.

Chelonoidis nigra abingdoni
Lonesome George, the Galápagos tortoise who was the last known individual of his subspecies from its native island.
Possibly extinct
Scientific classification
Kingdom:
Animalia
Phylum:
Chordata
Class:
Reptilia
Order:
Testudines
Family:
Testudinidae
Genus:
Chelonoidis
Species:
C. nigra
Subspecies:
C. n. abingdoni
Trinomial name
Chelonoidis nigra abingdoni
(Günther, 1877)
Synonyms

Geochelone abingdoni

Chelonoidis nigra abingdoni, known as the Pinta Island tortoise,[1] Pinta giant tortoise,[2] Abingdon Island tortoise,[3] or Abingdon Island giant tortoise,[2] is a subspecies of Galápagos tortoise native to Ecuador's Pinta Island,[4] believed to have become extinct in June 2012.[note 1]

Lonesome George

Lonesome George at the Charles Darwin Research Station. Photo taken in December 2006.

The last known individual of the subspecies was a male named Lonesome George[6] (Spanish: El Solitario Jorge/George),[7] who died on 24 June 2012.[8][7][9] In his last years, he was known as the rarest creature in the world. George served as a potent symbol for conservation efforts in the Galápagos and internationally.[10]

George was first seen on the island of Pinta on 1 December 1971 by Hungarian malacologist József Vágvölgyi. The island's vegetation had been devastated by introduced feral goats, and the indigenous C. n. abingdoni population had been reduced to a single individual. It is thought that he was named after a character played by American actor George Gobel[citation needed]. Relocated for his safety to the Charles Darwin Research Station, George was penned with two females of a different subspecies. Although eggs were produced, none hatched. The Pinta tortoise was pronounced functionally extinct as George was in captivity. On 24 June 2012, Lonesome George died of unknown causes.[11][12]

Death of Lonesome George

On 24 June 2012, at 8:00 am local time, Director of the Galápagos National Park Edwin Naula announced that Lonesome George had been found dead by his caretaker of 40 years, Fausto Llerena.[13] Naula suspects that the cause of death was heart failure consistent with the end of the natural life cycle of a tortoise. A necropsy is planned to determine an official cause of death.[14] He was believed to be over 100 years old, and he weighed 200 lbs. The event may have marked the total extinction of his subspecies.[15] The reason for the ambiguity is that one or more individuals from the subspecies may still be living in captivity or on a neighboring island in the Galápagos.

Conservation efforts

A prolonged effort to exterminate goats introduced to Pinta is now complete, and the vegetation of the island is starting to return to its former state.[citation needed] The presence of mixed race Pinta ancestry tortoises around Wolf Volcano, on neighbouring Isabela island, suggests the recent presence of at least one Pinta individual near Wolf Volcano. A reward of $10,000 was offered for the discovery of a Pinta female to help save the subspecies.[16][unreliable source?]

Reproduction attempts

Dead specimen.

Over the decades, all attempts at mating Lonesome George had been unsuccessful, possibly due to the lack of females of his own subspecies. This prompted researchers at the Darwin Station to offer a $10,000 reward for a suitable mate.[6]

Until January 2011, George was penned with two females of the subspecies Chelonoidis nigra becki (from the Wolf Volcano region of Isabela island), in the hope that his genotype would be retained in any resulting progeny. This subspecies was then thought to be genetically closest to George's; however, any potential offspring would have been intergrades, not purebreds of the Pinta subspecies.[12]

In July 2008, George unexpectedly mated with one of his female companions. Thirteen eggs were collected and placed in incubators.[17] On 11 November 2008, the Charles Darwin Foundation reported 80% of the eggs showed weight loss characteristic of being inviable.[17][18] By December 2008, the remaining eggs had failed to hatch and x-rays showed they were inviable.[19]

On 21 July 2009, exactly one year after announcing George had mated, the Galápagos National Park announced one of George's female companions had laid a second clutch of five eggs.[20] The park authority expressed its hope for the second clutch of eggs, which it said were in perfect condition.[21] The eggs were moved to an incubator, but on 16 December, it was announced the incubation period had ended and the eggs were inviable (as was a third batch of six eggs laid by the other female).[22]

In November 1999, scientists reported Lonesome George was "very closely related to tortoises" from Española Island (C. n. hoodensis) and San Cristóbal Island (C. n. chathamensis).[23] On 20 January 2011, two individual C. n. hoodensis female partners were imported to the Charles Darwin Research Station, where George lived.[24]

Possible remaining individuals

In May 2007, analysis of genomic microsatellites (DNA sequences) suggested other individuals of Geochelone nigra abingdoni may still exist in the wild in the Galápagos.[25] Researchers have identified one male tortoise from the Volcano Wolf region of the neighboring Galápagos island Isabela, which has half his genes in common with George's subspecies. This animal must be a first generation intergrade between the subspecies of the islands Isabela and Pinta.[25] A pure Pinta tortoise possibly lives among the 2,000 tortoises on Isabela.[26]

"The identification of eight individuals of mixed ancestry among only 27 individuals sampled (estimated Volcano Wolf population size 1,000–2,000) …suggests the need to mount an immediate and comprehensive survey …to search for additional individuals of Pinta ancestry."[25]

Notes

  1. ^ The subspecies is believed to have become extinct with the death of "Lonesome George" in June 2012.[5] The IUCN still lists the tortoise as "extinct in the wild".[3] In addition, a first-generation descendant has been found at Volcán Wolf on Isabela Island.[5]

References

  1. ^ Reynolds, Robert P. (1983). "Lonesome George, the Pinta Island Tortoise: A Case of Limited Alternatives". Noticias de Galapagos. Charles Darwin Foundation for the Galapagos Isles: 14–17. {{cite journal}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  2. ^ a b van Dijk, Peter Paul; Iverson, John B.; Shaffer, H. Bradley; Bour, Roger; Rhodin, Anders G. J. (2011). "Turtles of the World, 2011 Update: Annotated Checklist of Taxonomy, Synonymy, Distribution, and Conservation Status". In Rhodin, Anders G.J.; Pritchard, Peter C. H.; van Dijk, Peter Paul; Saumure, Raymond A.; Buhlmann, Kurt A.; Iverson, John B.; Mittermeier, Russell A. (eds.). Conservation Biology of Freshwater Turtles and Tortoises. Chelonian Research Monographs, Number 5. p. 000.165. doi:10.3854/crm.5.000.checklist.v4.2011. OCLC 472656069.
  3. ^ a b Template:IUCN2012.1
  4. ^ Template:IUCN2012.1
  5. ^ a b Jones, Bryony (25 June 2012). "Lonesome George, last of the Pinta Island tortoises, dies". CNN. Retrieved 25 June 2012.
  6. ^ a b Gardner, Simon (6 February 2001). "Lonesome George faces own Galapagos tortoise curse". Archived from the original on 2011-06-04. Retrieved 2012-01-11.
  7. ^ a b Proceso de Relaciones Públicas de la Dirección del Parque Nacional Galápagos (24 June 2012). "El mundo pierde al solitario George". Retrieved 2012-06-25.
  8. ^ "Lonesome George, last-of-his-kind Galapagos tortoise, dies". 25 June 2012.
  9. ^ Raferty, Isolde. "Lonesome George, last-of-its-kind Galapagos tortoise, dies". MSNBC. Retrieved 2012-06-24.
  10. ^ Nicholls, Henry (2006). Lonesome George: The Life and Loves of a Conservation Icon. London: Macmillan Science. ISBN 1-4039-4576-4.[page needed]
  11. ^ "Lonesome George, last-of-his-kind Galapagos tortoise, dies". Chicago Tribune. Reuters. June 24, 2012.
  12. ^ a b "Joy at giant tortoise eggs". BBC. 23 July 2008. Retrieved 2012-01-11.
  13. ^ "Muere el Solitario George, la última tortuga gigante de isla Pinta". El Unveriso. Retrieved 24 June 2012.
  14. ^ "El solitario George murió esta madrugada" (in Spanish). El Comercio. 24 June 2012. Retrieved 24 June 2012. Naula estima que el fallecimiento se debió a un paro del corazón, propio de que la tortuga ya habría cumplido su ciclo de vida. No obstante, se esperará hasta el resultado de la necropsia para determinar oficialmente qué generó el deceso.
  15. ^ Alvear, Cecilia (June 24, 2012). "Lonesome George RIP!". Galápagos Digital.
  16. ^ Sulloway, Frank J. (July 28th, 2006). "Is Lonesome George Really Lonesome?". eSkeptic. ISSN 1556-5696. Retrieved 2012-01-11. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  17. ^ a b "Dwindling Hopes of Offspring from Lonesome". Charles Darwin Foundation for the Galapagos Islands. November 11, 2008. Archived from the original on 2008-12-08. Retrieved 2012-01-11.
  18. ^ "Galapagos bachelor tortoise struggles to be a dad". CBC. November 11, 2008. Retrieved 2012-01-11.
  19. ^ Gray, Louise (5 December 2008). "Lonesome George's first sex in decades ends in disappointment". The Telegraph. London. Retrieved 2012-01-11.
  20. ^ "New eggs spark Galapagos tortoise hopes". WA Today. July 22, 2009. Retrieved 2012-01-11.
  21. ^ Tran, Mark (22 July 2009). "Lonesome George, the last Galápagos giant tortoise, may become a dad". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 2012-01-11.
  22. ^ "Eggs from Lonesome George's Companion are Infertile, Once Again" (Press release). Galapagos Conservancy. December 16, 2009. Archived from the original on November 8, 2010. Retrieved January 11, 2012. {{cite press release}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  23. ^ Caccone, Adalgisa; Gibbs, James P.; Ketmaier, Valerio; Suatoni, Elizabeth; Powell, Jeffrey R. (1999). "Origin and evolutionary relationships of giant Galápagos tortoises". Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 96 (23): 13223–8. Bibcode:1999PNAS...9613223C. doi:10.1073/pnas.96.23.13223. JSTOR 49147. PMC 23929. PMID 10557302.
  24. ^ "Will Lonesome George finally find a mate?". The Telegraph. January 21, 2011. Retrieved 2012-01-11.
  25. ^ a b c Russello, Michael A.; Beheregaray, Luciano B.; Gibbs, James P.; Fritts, Thomas; Havill, Nathan; Powell, Jeffrey R.; Caccone, Adalgisa (1 May 2007). "Lonesome George is not alone among Galápagos tortoises" (PDF). Current Biology. 17 (9): R317–R318. doi:10.1016/j.cub.2007.03.002. PMID 17470342. Retrieved 2012-01-11.
  26. ^ "Iconic tortoise George may not be last of his kind". ABC News. Agence France-Presse. May 01, 2007. Retrieved 2012-01-11. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
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