The oldest turtle. The world's oldest turtle

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

Meet her, whose name is Jonathan. She recently turned 184, making her the oldest known land animal in the world. Jonathan lives on St. Helena Island in the South Atlantic Ocean. He is extremely famous in his homeland and can be said to be an integral part of the local community. Therefore, home for oldest turtle in the world serves as Plantation House, the official residence of the governor.

The age of this giant turtle 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. Next to it, for comparison, is his photo from 2015:

Jonathan has lost his sight due to cataracts, and he can no longer smell, but otherwise feels quite normal. His health is being monitored by local veterinarian Dr. Joe Hollinse. Interesting fact: the oldest turtle never took a bath, so it can also be considered the dirtiest animal in the world. So Dr. Hollinse gave Jonathan the first bath of his life, washing off all the dirt that had accumulated on it for almost 200 years.

How she was bathed:

Some photos of almost two-hundred-year-old Jonathan:

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

Contemporary of Charles Darwin

Once in Australia Zoo lived a real contemporary of the famous naturalist named Charles Darwin, who is famous for discovering the theory of human evolution. The world's oldest turtle, 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’s hard to imagine how many owners it has had, the very first of which was none other than the founder of the theory of evolution, Charles Darwin himself!

Life story...

Birthday

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

Who's the boss?

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 most old turtle in the world belonged to Darwin, is based only on the fact that the scientist caught four giant specimens 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 revealed that Harriet most likely came from an island called Santa Cruz (Galapagos Islands).

Guilty without guilt

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

Quiet and modest

According to the stories of the keepers of the zoo where this turtle lived, its favorite food was hibiscus flowers. In addition, she ate eggplants, 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 oldest turtle in the world is considered to be a male Jonathan, living on the island of St. Helena. He is supposedly 180 years old today. However, this is not accurate information because Jonathan's DNA analysis carried out by the world's scientists cannot give us exact numbers.

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

There is an opinion that every living creature on Earth has a much longer life cycle, but due to certain circumstances and various unfavorable factors, be it bad ecology, poor nutrition, illness, accidents, etc., you have to leave earlier than expected, although there are happy exceptions.

One such exception is the oldest turtle in the world, which lives in the waters of the South China Sea, which washes Hanoi, Vietnam. When asked how old the oldest turtle in the world is, local residents give figures from 529 to 1000 years, although this fact has never received scientific confirmation. It is noteworthy that we are talking about a long-lived leatherback turtle, which was discovered not in the sea, but in one of the lakes of Hanoi called Hoan Kiem. Moreover, 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 a height of 1 meter 35 centimeters to 2 meters 10 centimeters. But the largest specimen to date was the leatherback turtle, whose weight just fell short of one ton, amounting to 916 kilograms. And one can only guess how many years this sea monster has lived in the world, listed both in the Red Book as an endangered subspecies and in the Guinness Book of Records for several parameters (weight, length, age, etc.). One more interesting fact became 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 exploited by researchers who attached special fixing devices to their shells, allowing them to measure the depth of reservoirs.

Another contender for the title of the longest-living turtle in the world 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 happened significant event in 1902. A little later, this photograph 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 established that Jonathan came to St. Helena Island 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 love of this old-timer male, because even today, despite his advanced age, he has three young lovers at once and feels great in their company. Today, Jonathan has become one of the attractions of the famous island, happily posing for visiting tourists.

Another interesting fact in the biography of the oldest turtle in the world was his first swim, 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-calorie, as a result of which the animal gained weight and became even more cheerful and active. Thus, the main menu of the island old-timer, who has survived 8 rulers and 28 governors in his time, 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, which often live up to 150 years of age, also have special longevity. India can boast of such rare animals, however, this year a real tragedy occurred in one of the cities of this wonderful country - the local Advitta tortoise, which had long been considered the oldest animal on the planet, died at the age of 256. 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, has survived more than one government, eventually ending up in the local zoo from private hands, automatically becoming its main attraction. After Advitta’s death, the authorities decided to leave her shell as a souvenir, which today can be seen in one of the museums in Calcutta.

There are old-timers among both people and animals. Turtles are considered the most prone to long life, especially if they live in ideal conditions - an acceptable climate, abundant and healthy diet, communication with relatives. What is the oldest turtle on the planet?

Samira

This animal belonged to the Galapagos tortoise breed. She lived to be 270 years old (according to other sources - 315), dying in 2006 in the Cairo Zoo, as they say, of old age. Samira was donated to the park by the last king of the state, Farouk, who has a weakness for exotic animals. At the end of her life, Samira practically did not move.

Advaita

The second oldest turtle in the world belonged to a species native to the Seychelles and lived to be approximately 250 years old. Back in the 19th century, English soldiers brought it from the Seychelles and presented it to Lord Clive before he went home in 1867. Earlier, in the middle of the 18th century, the lord was sent to India with the aim of establishing a colonial regime there. During his absence, the animal lived in the palace garden. In 1875, it was decided to place it in the Calcutta Zoo (although there is still no official confirmation that this is the same turtle).

In March 2006, the reptile was found dead by zoo staff. This was predictable, since Advaita had been feeling unwell for a couple of days before this. The impressive shell was preserved as a memory of the favorite of several generations of townspeople. Later, an examination was carried out to accurately determine the age of the turtle.

The exact name of the Advaita variety was "aldabra", in accordance with the atoll of the same name. This UN-protected site is home to another 150,000 of these turtles. Average weight the animal weighs 120 kg.

Tui Malila

According to legend, this Madagascar radiated tortoise was presented by Captain James Cook to the head of the Aborigines of Tonga in 1773. There is no official evidence of this, but if you believe it, it turns out that at the time of her death in 1966 she was 193 years old. By this point, she was already blind and could barely eat, so zookeepers had to move her mouth directly to the feeder.

Jonathan

This huge, imposing Seychelles tortoise was brought to St. Helena in 1882 along with three other specimens, each approximately 50 years old. Jonathan, now 185 years old, lives in the garden of the home of the island's governor, Spencer Davis. In 1900, a photograph was taken of a huge turtle lying at the feet of a Boer War prisoner. In 2008, confirmation was published that this particular turtle was Jonathan, who at that time was about 70 years old.

Harietta

At one time, an elephant tortoise named Garietta was included in the Guinness Book of Records for his long life– in 2005 she was 175 years old, all of which she spent in captivity. It is not known exactly who caught her; according to one version, it was Charles Darwin, according to another - ordinary whalers.

For the last 30 years of its life, the animal was a real attraction at the Queensland Zoo.

IN wildlife, according to scientists, only a dozen of its brothers remain.

It should be noted that the population could have been larger if Harietta had not been caught: until the end of her life she was capable of fertilization, but did not have a partner.

Favorite food amazing turtle there were hibiscus, and she also loved to eat eggplant and parsley, and was generally quite unpretentious and modest. Zoo workers talk about this.

Timothy

In April 2004, another of the honored long-lived turtles died. At that time, Timothy was 160 years old. He spent amazing life, serving as a mascot on a British warship, then sailed with soldiers to China and East India, and retired 100 years before his death. All this time, the turtle crawled in the garden around Powderham Castle, located in Devon, and during hibernation hid among the rose bushes. Then a sign was attached to it asking not to disturb. In 1926, all fans of the turtle were in for an unexpected surprise: it turned out that Timothy was a female. In general, we can say that the animal led a rather active lifestyle compared to other relatives and peers.

These are the amazing animals that lived and continue to live on our planet. I would like to believe that all representatives of the animal world will be just as lucky with their living conditions so that they can lead a long, fruitful life.

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

Contemporary of Charles Darwin

Once upon a time in the Australian Zoo there lived a real contemporary of the famous naturalist named Charles Darwin, who is famous for the discovery of the theory of evolution, a turtle 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’s hard to imagine how many owners it has had, the very first of which was none other than the founder of the theory of evolution, Charles Darwin himself!

Life story...

Birthday

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

Who's the boss?

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 specimens 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 revealed that Harriet most likely came from an island called Santa Cruz.

Guilty without guilt

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

Quiet and modest

According to the stories of the keepers of the zoo where this turtle lived, its favorite food was hibiscus flowers. In addition, she ate eggplants, 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 oldest turtle in the world is considered to be a male Jonathan, living on the island of St. Helena. He is supposedly 180 years old today. However, this is not accurate information because Jonathan's DNA analysis carried out by the world's scientists cannot give us exact numbers.

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