Two hundred years ago, a species of giant tortoises roamed Floreana Island, part of Ecuador’s Galápagos island chain. In the mid-1800s, these tortoises were hunted to extinction. Now they’re back.
In February, nearly 160 giant tortoises were released on Floreana Island. They’re related to those that lived there long ago. British newspaper the Guardian reported on the event.
Scientists have been working on this for years. In 2008, they found tortoises with some Floreana ancestry. These lived on nearby Isabela Island. From them, the scientists bred a new line of tortoises. It’s similar to the original Floreana species. These tortoises were born in captivity, then released into the wild.
Many groups helped. These included the Charles Darwin Foundation. It’s a Galápagos research group. Rakan Zahawi is its executive director. He spoke about the project in a press release. Zahawi called the tortoises a “critical part” of Floreana Island.
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