End of a Species - Lonesome George

Lonesome George with our Naturalist Guide

 Rest In Peace 

Lonesome George

Early Sunday morning, Lonesome George, the last known individual of the Pinta Island Tortoise, was found dead in his corral at the Tortoise Breeding and Rearing Center in Puerto Ayora, Santa Cruz Island, by members of the Galapagos National Park Service.  His exact age was unknown, but he was believed to be more than 100 years old.

A member of one of eleven subspecies of Galapagos tortoise native to the Galapagos Islands, he had been labelled the rarest creature in the world, and was a potent symbol for conservation efforts in the Galápagos and internationally.

Not so Lonesome

Lonesome George was found on Pinta in 1972 although Pinta tortoises were thought to be extinct. Since then, Lonesome George has been part of the Tortoise Program of the Galapagos National Park Service (GNPS). Various efforts were made to get George to reproduce. Two female tortoises collected on Wolf Volcano (Isabela Island) were put in Lonesome George’s corral. These females produced eggs at the end of 15 years with Lonesome George. Unfortunately all of the eggs were infertile. Later two females from the Espanola tortoise population (the species most closely related to Pinta tortoises genetically) were with George until the end.   

A visit to the Charles Darwin Research Station in Puerto Ayora was not complete without stopping by Lonesome George's corral to see him drinking from his favorite watering hole or simply just lounging around.  We were fortunate to see him a few years ago when we were on Celebrity Xpedition in Galapagos.   George didn't mind having people checking him out, and would pose for photos with his guests.

A New Beginning

The cause of Lonesome George's death won't be known until a necropsy is completed.   He is being kept in a cold chamber to avoid decomposition prior to the necropsy.

His legacy will live on.  Following Lonesome George's death, Edwin Naula, Director of the GNPS, stated, “This July, the GNPS is convening an international workshop to focus on management strategies for the restoration of tortoise populations during the next ten years. The workshop will be held in honor of Lonesome George.“

Restoration of Lonesome George's island of Pinta as well as the other islands in the Galapagos archipelago will keep him in our minds for generations to come.    

Related Blog Posts:

Hope for Lonesome George
Galapagos - Charles Darwin Research Center (Day 9)

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Galapagos - Santa Cruz Highlands (Day 9 Afternoon)

The afternoon activity consisted of a bus ride to the highlands of Santa Cruz to observe giant tortoises in the wild. Both the Charles Darwin Research Center and this tour were offered in the morning and afternoon. We opted to do the research center in the morning.

The Zodiacs dropped us off at the landing pier in Port Ayora where we made a short walk to a waiting mini-bus. After a short drive through the highlands, we arrived at a farm. There was a light rain falling, so we were happy we had our nylon jackets and walking shoes.

We began walking along a path which was muddy from the rain that had fallen earlier. Since we had our walking sticks with us, we didn't have any problems navigating along the path. The first thing we saw was the entrance to a lava tunnel. We made our way down the path and went inside. After a few photos, we exited the tunnel and started on our quest to find giant tortoises who were roaming the farm freely.

It didn't take long before we saw our first tortoise grazing in the grass. He was just laying in the grass pretty much ignoring us. After a while, he lifted his head to look at us, but then went back to his original position, resting in the grass.

We headed further through the grass and before long we saw one giant tortoise and then another. There were about five of them in a relatively short distance. Some of them were moving slowly through the grass, others were just resting in the grass, and a couple of them were eating the vegetation.

There is a fenced in area on this farm, but the tortoises have plenty of room to move about freely. Below is a video taken near the fence of a giant tortoise having lunch. It consisted of a ripe grapefruit that had fallen from one of the trees.

This was a fitting conclusion to our excursions in the Galapagos Islands. The giant tortoises are probably the most widely known creatures of the Archipelago. It was amazing to be able to observe them in their nature habitat without any barrier between them and us. They were not bothered by us at all. We have several photos and videos to remember them by.

Galapagos - Charles Darwin Research Center (Day 9)

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Day 9 (Saturday, Sept. 6th) finds the Celebrity Xpedition anchored at Puerto Ayora, the largest town in the Galapagos. It is located on Santa Cruz Island, the second-largest island in the Galapagos and hub for tourists.

 2009 marks the 50th anniversary of the Galapagos National Park and the Charles Darwin Foundation

 In 1959 (the centenary year of Darwin's publication "The Origin of the Species"), the Ecuadorian government declared all the islands, except areas already colonized, as a national park. In the same year, the Charles Darwin Foundation (CDF) was founded with a primary objective of ensuring the conservation of the unique Galapagos ecosystems and to promote the scientific studies necessary to fulfill its conservation functions.

We took a short bus ride through the small town of Port Ayora, arriving at the entrance of the Charles Darwin Research Station. It was quite a walk to the actual start of the research station from where the bus dropped us off. The path was patio blocks at first but then changed to a dirt trail. We were concerned because one of the passengers in our group was on crutches and we didn't think she'd be able to make the walk. We were happy to see her waiting for us at the end of the path - there is
vehicle access for handicapped and official vehicles.
 
One of the naturalists took us inside the tortoise conservation building where we saw displays on tortoise exploitation, conservation, and ecology. She also explained the captive breeding program which began in 1962. Since that time many tortoises have been repatriated to their original islands. Wardens of the Galapagos National Park Service collect eggs and hatchlings from tortoise nests on Pinzon, Santiago, San Cristobal, and Santa Cruz Islands and bring them to the center for protection and rearing.

Eggs from the nests of Espanola tortoises at the center are also gathered. Eggs are placed in incubators. The hatching process usually takes about 3 days. After an incubation of about 4 months, a tortoise finally breaks free of its eggshell. A yolk sac attached to its stomach provides nourishment to the hatchling in its first few weeks of life. Upon emerging from the egg, hatchlings are kept in dark boxes for two to four weeks, which simulates the time spent in the natural nest chamber. Each tortoise is given a colored identification number. The colors represent each tortoise's "home island". Baby tortoises are weighted, and measured for length and girth. The hatchlings are then moved to outdoor corrals, where they live and grow for up to two years. You can see these corrals in the photos above.

  Lonesome George - rarest creature in the world Lonesome George is the last known individual of the Pinta Island Tortoise, one of eleven subspecies of Galapagos tortoise native to the Galapagos Islands. He has been labelled the rarest creature in the world, and is a potent symbol for conservation efforts in the Galapagos and internationally. It is thought that he was named after a character played by American actor George Gobel.

 George was first seen on the island of Pinta on 1 December 1971 by American snail biologist Joseph Vagvolgyi. The island's vegetation had been decimated by introduced feral goats, and the indigenous tortoise population had been reduced to a single individual. He was relocated for his safety to the Charles Darwin Research Station. George is estimated to be 60–90 years of age, and is in good health, however efforts to get him to mate with two females of a different subspecies from Wolf Island have failed. Research continues to date, and it is hoped that a pure Pinta tortoise lives among the 2,000 tortoises on Isabela. Will George's subspecies become extinct? Hopefully not, but regardless of what happens to this one animal, let him always remind us that the fate of all living things on Earth is in human hands.

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Galapagos - Bachas Beach (Santa Cruz)

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Day 6 (Wed. Sept 3rd) dawns and we are at the mid-point of our Galapagos cruise. We've seen sea lions, iguanas, blue-footed boobies, cormorants, and many other species of birds and local wildlife. We now turn our attention to the sea to get a closer look at the aquatic life.

Bachas Beach (Santa Cruz) is a beautiful beach located on the northern coast of Santa Cruz Island. The name "Las Bachas" comes from the poor English pronunciation of "barges". During the 1950's the WWII barges had broken their moorings and ran aground on the beach.

The morning activity that we chose was a wet landing on Bachas Beach. After a short hike, we had time to snorkel. Pacific Green Sea Turtles nest on the back beach area, so it was off limits. There were various types of tropical fish such as Yellow tailed Surgeon Fish, Parrot Fish, and the small Galapagos Damsel Fish.

We spent about 2 hours at the beach before returning the ship for lunch. View our Galapagos - Bachas Beach photo album.

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