by Silvia Morosi
The event was celebrated at the Tropiquarium in Servion, Switzerland. The spokesman for the institution: “A phenomenon that has never been observed before, neither in zoos nor in nature”
An extraordinary event. The first albino Galápagos giant tortoise (Chelonoidis niger) (characterized by the complete lack of pigmentation) was born in captivity at the Servion Tropiquarium in Switzerland as part of a conservation program for the endangered species. «We had the surprise of an albino puppy. A phenomenon never seen before in the zoo and in nature,” said the facility’s spokesman. “We were surprised to discover a small albino among our baby giant tortoises” (Here is the story of “Fernanda”, the Galápagos giant tortoise believed to be extinct a century ago).
ALBINISM IN THE WILDLIFE
Albinism is rare in tortoises, with about one in 100,000 individuals, “compared to about one in 20,000 humans.” In general, it also exposes those affected to various dangers in the animal world: not only because of the extreme sensitivity of the skin, but also because it prevents camouflage and hiding from possible predators. The mother of the Swiss-born specimen, which weighs more than 100 kilograms, laid five eggs on February 11 and the baby was born on May 1. To make what happened even more unbelievable is the extremely low mating success rate in this species: around 3%.
– Here is Sea Turtle Day, celebrated on June 16th.
DARWIN IN THE GALAPAGOS
The Galápagos giant tortoise (Chelonoidis niger) belongs to the Testudinidae family, endemic to the homonymous archipelago in the Pacific Ocean, famous (also) for the studies of the British naturalist Charles Darwin, who arrived there on September 15, 1835. His voyage – and the cataloging of over a hundred species – is recounted in The Voyage of the Beagle, first published in 1839. The giant tortoises that live on the Galápagos Islands off Ecuador are the largest living today: they can weigh 320 kilograms and even live to be over 100 years old. The species has differentiated itself into thirteen subspecies (originally there were 15 but 2 are extinct) on the different islands of the archipelago, distinguished by the shape and size of the carapace (here the story of Diego and George, the symbol of the two turtles ). the island”).
June 16, 2022 (change June 16, 2022 | 12:02 p.m.)
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