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Article: Is Lonesome George really Lonesome?(Galapagos tortoise)
- Article from:
- Skeptic (Altadena, CA)
- Article date:
- January 1, 2006
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2006 Skeptics Society & Skeptic Magazine. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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IT IS OFTEN ASSERTED THAT Lonesome George, a Galapagos tortoise (Geochelone nigra abingdoni) from Pinta Island, is the last survivor of his race. A little known fact, however, is that a zoo in Prague houses what is claimed to be another Galapagos tortoise from Pinta. A male named Tony by his keepers, this animal is believed to have been born around 1960, based on his weight and size when he arrived at a zoo in Koln am Rhein in 1972. (1)
Identification of this Galapagos tortoise as coming from Pinta is based on the judgment of Peter Pritchard, one of the world's foremost authorities on Galapagos tortoises (and of tortoises and turtles of the world more generally). ...