Galapagos Islands Tourists at Tortoise Sanctuary

Galapagos Islands Tourists at Tortoise Sanctuary by Catherine Sherman.... more

by Catherine Sherman

Title

Galapagos Islands Tourists at Tortoise Sanctuary

Artist

Catherine Sherman

Medium

Photograph - Photography

Description

"Galapagos Islands Tourists at Tortoise Sanctuary" by Catherine Sherman.

A giant Galapagos Tortoise has retreated into his shell as a group of tourists gather to learn more about this magnificent creature.

Galapagos is an old Spanish word for tortoise. The signs at this ranch warn visitors not to feed or touch the "galapagos." The tortoises sometimes make a huffing sound if you accidentally get too close. This sanctuary is in the highlands of Santa Cruz island, one of the populated islands in the Galapagos.

The Galapagos tortoise or Galapagos giant tortoise (Chelonoidis nigra) is the largest living species of tortoise and the 14th-heaviest living reptile.

Modern giant tortoises can weigh up to 550 pounds (250 kilograms); even larger versions, now extinct, roamed every continent except Antarctica and Australia. Today, they exist only the Galapagos Islands, and Aldabra in the Indian Ocean. The tortoise is native to seven of the Galapagos Islands, a volcanic archipelago about 620 miles (more than 1,000 kilometers) west of the Ecuadorian mainland. With life spans in the wild of over 100 years, it is one of the longest-lived vertebrates.

Featured in "UNESCO World Heritage Site" group (11/20/2018)

Uploaded

April 29th, 2015