How old do Galapagos tortoises get?
Galápagos tortoise
The Galápagos tortoises are native to seven of the Galápagos Islands, a volcanic archipelago about 1,000km (620mi) west of the Ecuadorian mainland. With lifespans in the wild of over 100 years, it is one of the longest-lived vertebrates. A captive individual lived at least 170years. Spanish explorers, who discovered the islands in the 16th century, named them after the Spanish galápago, meaning "tortoise".[11]
Life in Cold Blood
Filming began in the early part of 2006 and, as with Attenborough's previous series, the production team travelled the world to photograph the required sequences. In May 2006, Attenborough celebrated his 80th birthday in the Galápagos Islands while filming giant tortoises, one of which, called Lonesome George, was thought to be the same age. Lonesome George died on 24 June 2012; he was believed to have been more than 100 years old.