The oldest turtle in the world. Life story. The oldest turtles in the world The oldest turtle

There is an opinion that every living creature on Earth contains a much longer life cycle, however, due to certain circumstances and various unfavorable factors, whether it is bad ecology, malnutrition, illnesses, accidents, etc., you have to leave ahead of schedule, although there are happy exceptions.

One such exception is the oldest turtle in the world, which lives in the waters South China Sea washing the Vietnamese Hanoi. Answering the question of how old is the oldest turtle in the world, locals give figures from 529 to 1000 years, however, this fact has not received scientific confirmation. It is noteworthy that we are talking about a long-lived leatherback turtle, which was found not in the sea, but in one of the lakes of Hanoi called Hoan Kiem. At the same time, turtles of this breed are not only the oldest, but also the largest on our planet, because the average weight of this animal ranges from 300 to 500 kilograms with growth from 1 meter 35 centimeters to 2 meters 10 centimeters. But the largest specimen to date has become a leatherback turtle, the weight of which only slightly fell short of one ton, amounting to 916 kilograms. And one can only guess about how many years this sea ​​monster, listed both in the Red Book as an endangered subspecies, and in the Guinness Book of Records for several parameters at once (weight, length, age, etc.). Another interesting fact was the fact that the shell of these centenarians is covered with leather, and not bone tissue(hence the name). In addition, these animals are deep-sea, this feature was fully used by researchers who attached special fixing devices to their shells to measure the depth of water bodies.

Another contender for the title of the world's longest-lived tortoise named Jonathan lives on the famous island of St. Helena and this year he celebrated his 185th birthday. For the first time this old man was noticed by a photographer who came to capture the island with his camera and this significant event took place in 1902. A little later, this picture was put up for auction, after which they became seriously interested in the life of the turtle and decided to find out interesting facts from its biography. As a result, it was found that Jonathan came to St. Helena with his owners at the end of the Nineteenth century, and since then he has changed more than one family. In addition, scientists noted the amazing lovingness of this old-timer male, because even today, despite his advanced age, he has three young lovers at once and feels great in their society. To date, Jonathan has become one of the attractions of the famous island, posing with pleasure for visiting tourists.

Another interesting biography of the oldest turtle in the world was his first bath, which took place last year under the supervision of a local veterinarian. The same doctor completely revised Jonat's diet, making it more varied and high in calories, as a result of which the animal gained weight and became even more cheerful and active. So, the main menu of the island old-timer, who survived 8 rulers and 28 governors in his lifetime, mainly consists of fresh vegetables and fruits, he gives the greatest preference to guava, bananas and apples.

It is known that the huge Seychelles tortoises also have a special longevity, which often live up to 150 years of age. India can also boast of such rare animals, however, this year, in one of the cities of this wonderful country, a real tragedy- At the age of 256, the local Adwitta tortoise, which for a long time was considered the oldest animal on the planet, died. It is noteworthy that this animal also came to Calcutta from the Seychelles and was brought by Indian sailors, who were amazed at its size.

This turtle, like its brother Jonathan, survived more than one government, eventually falling from private hands into the local zoo, automatically becoming its main attraction. After Adwitta's death, the authorities decided to keep her shell as a souvenir, which can be seen today in one of the museums in Calcutta.

The world's oldest turtle lived in Australia. Why did she live? She passed away not too long ago. Everything comes to an end sometime. In this article, we will tell you about the life of this famous turtle, as well as its possible "successor". The world should know its heroes, as they say, by sight!

Contemporary of Charles Darwin

Once upon a time Australian zoo lived a real contemporary of the famous naturalist named Charles Darwin, who is known for discovering the theory of evolution, the tortoise, nicknamed Harriet, was listed in the Guinness Book of Records as a creature that lived in captivity for 175 years! Just think about it: in captivity! It is hard to imagine how many owners it has changed, the very first of which was none other than Charles Darwin himself, the founder of the theory of evolution!

Life story...

Birthday

On October 11, 2005, this giant elephant and also the world's oldest tortoise celebrated its 175th birthday. Harriet was born in the time of Queen Victoria, when she was still a child, namely in 1830. Surprisingly, for the first 124 years of life, this turtle was mistaken for a male.

Who is the owner?

Interestingly, British paleontologists, who carried out a very thorough reconstruction of the turtle's past, believe that it was not Darwin who caught it, but ordinary whalers as a source of food. In addition, the hypothesis that the oldest tortoise in the world belonged to Darwin is based only on the fact that the scientist caught four giant individuals during his trip to the Galapagos Islands (1835). Allegedly, Harriet was one of them.

Soon two of the four turtles died, the remaining two were transported by ship to Australia by one of Charles Darwin's friends. Further DNA analysis showed that Harriet most likely comes from an island called Santa Cruz.

Guilty without guilt

The oldest turtle has been the main attraction of the Queensland Zoo for the past 30 years! A study of her DNA indicates that she is at least 170 years old in any case. Today, scientists believe that about 12 of its relatives, giant elephant tortoises, are left on our planet. Moreover, zoologists blame Harriet for the small population! They claim that until the end of his life, the world's oldest tortoise retained the ability to reproduce offspring: she still ovulated, but there was no "groom" ...

Quiet and humble

According to the keepers of the zoo premises in which this turtle lived, its favorite food was hibiscus flowers. In addition, she ate eggplant, zucchini, parsley and beans and led a very modest lifestyle.

Harriet died in 2005 in the Galapagos Islands. She was 175 years old.

Continuation of the dynasty

According to unofficial data, valid as of October 2011, the world's oldest turtle is considered to be a certain male Jonathan, who lives on the island of St. Helena. Today he is supposedly 180 years old. However, this is not accurate information, because analysis of Jonathan's DNA by world scientists cannot give us exact numbers.

It is said that Jonathan still finds the strength to mate with three females. Interestingly, this turtle is a contemporary of 8 monarchs of Great Britain and its 50 prime ministers!

The Advaita tortoise ("only" in Sanskrit) is an animal recognized as one of the oldest in the world.

Advaita died on the night of March 22-23, 2006. It is recognized as one of the oldest animals in the world. Estimated date of birth 1750.

According to the minister Agriculture In the Indian state of West Bengal, Jogesh Barman, Advaita was a favorite of British General Robert Clive of the East India Trading Company and spent several years on his estate before being bought by a zoo 130 years ago.

Advaita referred to the giant tortoises, which are called "aldabra" - after the name of the Aldabra atoll, one of the many landmasses scattered in the Indian Ocean archipelago Seychelles. This place, where about 152 thousand relatives of Advaita live, has been declared a UN object world heritage. The average weight of such a turtle is about 120 kilograms. Advaita was very popular with tourists and attracted crowds of visitors to the Calcutta City Zoo.

Harriet's tortoise is an animal recognized as one of the oldest in the world.

An elephant tortoise named Harrietta was born around 1830 on one of the islands of the Galapagos archipelago and died on June 23, 2006 at the Australian Zoo.

It is believed that in 1835 it and two other individuals of this species were taken to the UK by the famous naturalist and scientist Charles Darwin. Since at that moment the animal was no larger than a plate, its age was estimated at five or six years. The sex of the animal was determined to be male and it received the nickname Harry.

In 1841, all three animals were transported to the Brisbane City Botanical Garden in Australia.

In 1952, the Brisbane Botanic Gardens closed and the tortoise was released into protected area Australian coast. Here it was discovered in 1960 by the director of the zoo from Hawaii and found that the sex of the animal is female. After some time, the turtle was moved to the Australian Zoo.

Since the documents of the animal were lost back in the 20s, it is not possible to document the age of the turtle. However, in 1992, genetic analysis was carried out, which confirmed that Harietta hails from the Galapagos Islands and her age is at least 162 years old.

In 2004, her 175th birthday was solemnly celebrated. Her weight at that time was 150 kg, and the size of a small dining table.

Turtle Tui Malila - Madagascar radiant tortoise (Astrochelys radiata), according to the Guinness Book of Records - one of the oldest animals in the world.

In 1773, it was presented to representatives of the ruling dynasty of the Kingdom of Tonga by the famous navigator Captain Cook. As of 1965, she was 188 years old.

Kiki? (fr. Kiki) - a male giant tortoise, one of the oldest animals on the planet, who died in the zoo of the Paris Garden of Plants (M?nagerie du Jardin des plantes) on November 30, 2009 at the age of 146 years.

Kiki was brought in 1923 by a Mauritian naturalist as a gift to France, already an adult.

At the time of his death, Kiki weighed 250 kg and, until his death, showed great zeal in caring for females, which earned him the love and respect of the French. The cause of death of the animal was an intestinal infection.

While we are looking for the secrets of longevity, there are creatures on our planet that live for more than a hundred years. And there are even immortals.

1. George, a huge lobster that weighs about 9.1 kg. George is approximately 140 years old. In 2008, he was caught off the coast of Newfoundland, then sold for $ 100 to a restaurant in New York. However, in 2009, under the influence of the Society for the Protection of Animals, he was released back into the ocean.

2. Tuatara Henry resident at the Southland Museum, New Zealand recently celebrated his 115th birthday. Just imagine that Henry was born back in the 19th century.

Despite his advanced age, in 2009 Henry became a father.

3. Guidaki is a species of marine mollusks considered to be the largest burrowing molluscs. In addition, guidaki are also long-lived: their average life expectancy is 146 years, and the age of the oldest individual found today is 168 years.

4. This is Jonathan, 182-year-old St. Helena giant tortoise. "He is practically blind, has lost his sense of smell, but he still has good hearing," says a local veterinarian. At 182, Jonathan may be the oldest living creature on the planet.

This is Jonathan in the 1900s

This is Jonathan now.

5. Greeter is an 83-year-old flamingo who until recently lived at the Adelaide Zoo. Greeter came to the zoo in the 1930s, but was unfortunately euthanized in 2014 when his condition deteriorated.

6. In the cold dark water at a depth of 600 meters, time flows slowly. Hoplostet- view deep sea fish, are known for reaching sexual maturity by the age of 20 and can live up to 150 years. The oldest hoplostet was born in the year when serfdom was abolished in Russia.

7. Red sea ​​urchins live an average of about 200 years and live in shallow water near west coast America. Special attention scientists were attracted to red hedgehogs after a mark dated 1805 was found on one of them.

8. Cockatoo Cookie turned 80 last year. He was caught in Australia in 1933 and shipped to the US, where he lives in the Brookfield Zoo.

9. A clam named Min, caught on the Icelandic shelf, according to the first assumptions, lived for 400 years. Upon reanalysis, scientists determined its age at around 507 years.

10. Bowhead whales can live up to 200 years. Average duration The life of this species is about 40 years. However, some individuals can live up to 211 years, which is a record among vertebrates.

11. 103-year-old Granny, the oldest known killer whale, is the matriarch of the killer whale community. She was born the same year as Ronald Reagan.

12. Advaita - a giant 250-year-old turtle from the island of Aldabra. Unfortunately, Advaita died in 2006. It was very popular with tourists and attracted many visitors to the Calcutta City Zoo.

13. Turtles are famous centenarians. This is 176-year-old Hariette from the zoo in Queensland (Australia). It is believed that Charles Darwin personally found Gariette in 1835 on one of the Galapagos Islands. Hariette died in the same 2006.

This is Jonathan, he is 184 years old (photo: earthphotos.com)

Meet this, whose name is Jonathan (Jonathan). She recently turned 184 years old, which is why she is considered the oldest land animal known in the whole world. Jonathan lives on Saint Helena in the southern part Atlantic Ocean. He is extremely famous in his homeland and, one might say, is an integral part of the local community. Therefore home to the oldest turtle in the world serves as Plantation House, the official residence of the governor.

The age of this giant tortoise is documented, and there are even photographs of it from a hundred years ago! For example, here is a photograph of Jonathan taken on St. Helena back in 1902. Nearby, for comparison, posted his photo of 2015:

Jonathan lost his sight due to cataracts, he also can no longer smell, but otherwise feels quite normal. His health is monitored by a local veterinarian, Dr. Joe Hollins. Interesting fact: The oldest turtle has never been washed, so it can also be considered the dirtiest animal in the world. Therefore, Dr. Hollins organized Jonathan's first bathroom in his life, washing off all the dirt that had accumulated on it for almost 200 years from the turtle.

How was she bathed?

Some photos of almost two hundred years old Jonathan: