Fernando Diez
Written by Fernando Diez Marketing Director at Quasar Expeditions

Updated: May 06, 2024
Published: February 20, 2019

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Young Galapagos Tortoise with neck extended, Galapagos Islands

Quick Facts on this new Galapagos Giant Tortoise Story:

  • An adult female Fernandina Giant Tortoise has been discovered in the Galapagos
  • An expedition to the island of Fernandina found the animal alive and well
  • The female has a large body, smooth shell and a pink head, but no other details have been revealed.
  • Only 10 species of Giant Tortoise are thought to have survived human colonization

One of the endemic Giant Tortoise species of the Ecuadorian archipelago of Galápagos, considered extinct a century ago, was found on an expedition on Fernandina Island, Environment Minister Marcelo Mata announced on Tuesday, February 19, 2019."The expedition, led by the Galapagos National Park and the Galapagos Conservancy, located a specimen (adult female) of the tortoise species Chelonoidis Phantasticus, which was

Giant Tortoise tucked inside its shell, photo by Parque Nacional Galapagos

The Fernandina Giant Tortoise is one of 14 giant tortoise species in the Galapagos but only ten are thought to have survived human colonization and over-hunting for food. The female has a large body, smooth shell and a pink head but no other details have been revealed.

Giant Tortoise hard shell, photo by Parque Nacional Galapagos
Temperatures for Galapagos Islands
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A tweet from Mr. Mata included an image of the Giant Tortoise & the only known specimen collected since 1906:

Anecdotal evidence and unconfirmed sightings have been reported ever since but the tortoise was formally listed on the IUCN red list as 'critically endangered (possibly extinct)'. Surveys and expeditions have turned up evidence of scat previously

The International Union for Conservation of Nature:

'These sightings and signs, though needing verification through more extensive surveys, indicate the possibility that the species may remain extant in exceedingly small numbers,'
- IUCN
Galapagos, a Giant Tortoise sanctuary


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Fernando Diez
By Fernando Diez
Marketing Director at Quasar Expeditions

Hi, I am Fernando and travel is my passion. This passion began with my first trip to the Galapagos Islands in 1986 and later became my work when I started working at Quasar Expeditions. Now the Marketing Director for Quasar and responsible for the creation of the Patagonia Project in Chile, my passion for travel continues to grow to new and exciting destinations in South America.

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