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An Aldabra giant tortoise, an example of a giant tortoise. Giant tortoises are any of several species of various large land tortoises, which include a number of extinct species, [1] as well as two extant species with multiple subspecies formerly common on the islands of the western Indian Ocean and on the Galápagos Islands. [2]
Tortoises are the most herbivorous group, consuming grasses, leaves, and fruits. [61] Many turtle species, including tortoises, supplement their diet with eggshells, animal bones, hair, and droppings for extra nutrients. [62] Turtles generally eat their food in a straightforward way, though some species have special feeding techniques. [13]
The Seychelles giant tortoise (Aldabrachelys gigantea hololissa), also known as the Seychelles domed giant tortoise, is a tortoise subspecies in the genus Aldabrachelys.. It inhabited the large central granitic Seychelles islands, but was hunted in vast numbers by European sailors.
Megalochelys ("great turtle") is an extinct genus of tortoises that lived from the Miocene to Pleistocene.They are noted for their giant size, the largest known for any tortoise, with a maximum carapace length of over 2 m (6.5 ft) in M. atlas.
The leopard tortoise is the fourth-largest species of tortoise in the world, with typical adults reaching 40 cm (16 in) and weighing 13 kg (29 lb). Adults tend to be larger in the northern and southern ends of their range, where typical specimens weigh up to 20 kg (44 lb), and an exceptionally large tortoise may reach 70 cm (28 in) and weigh 40 ...
Several lineages of tortoises have independently evolved very large body sizes in excess of 100 kilograms (220 lb), including the Galapagos giant tortoise and the Aldabra giant tortoise. They are usually diurnal animals with tendencies to be crepuscular depending on the ambient temperatures.
As of 2022, Jonathan, a Seychelles giant tortoise, is thought to be the oldest living giant tortoise at the age of 193 years. [25] Esmeralda, an Aldabra giant tortoise, is second at the age of 181 years, since the death of Harriet, a Galapagos giant tortoise, at 175. An Aldabra giant tortoise living on Changuu off Zanzibar is reportedly 199 ...
Aldabrachelys [1] is genus of giant tortoises, including the Aldabra giant tortoise (Aldabrachelys gigantea) native to the Seychelles, as well as two extinct species, Aldabrachelys abrupta and Aldabrachelys grandidieri known from Madagascar.