THE GIANT TORTOISES – GAL'APAGOS ISLANDS

The Galápagos Islands owe their name to these beautiful rare creatures, the amazing giant tortoises. When explorers first arrive in the islands they were calling them galapago a Spanish word for saddle that resembles the form of their shells.

The Galápagos Giant Tortoises can only be found in these islands and are the largest tortoises in the world.

These precious animals almost got extinct in 2012 due to the increasing introduction of non-native animals into the Galápagos Islands like rats, goats, pigs eating their eggs and humans using them for food and oil.

Thankfully the efforts done by the Galápagos National Park and the Charles Darwin Foundation brought some hope and currently they are very well preserved and people are more educated about their importance.

Impressive facts about the Galápagos Giant Tortoises

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• They can survive without food or water up to 1 year
• The oldest recorded tortoise had 152 years
• 16 hours of their day is nap time
• They can reach up to 250 kg and grow to 1.5 meters tall
• These tortoises are herbivorous and like to eat grass, cactus and fruits
• Their walking speed is 0.3 km/h

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Reserva El Chato in Santa Cruz Island

When I was younger I learned about this fantastic giant tortoise The Lonesome George, the islands most famous tortoise that lived for almost 100 years.

So, as soon as I arrived in Santa Cruz Island all I had in my mind was these giants’ tortoises and I really wanted to see them in real life!

To see them in their natural environment we drove up to Reserva El Chato, a ranch with a large area where they roam free but are still protected from harm.

As we were driving there we could already see some tortoises cuddling up with some cows – I was impressed already!

The admission fee to the ranch is $3 and then you can just stay as long as you want. You can walk around the animals but always keep a safe distance to avoid disturb them.

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Seeing the giant tortoises was one of my favourite moments in the Galápagos Islands. Have you ever seen them? How was it?

 

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