Goodbye, Lonesome George

A photograph of Lonesome George taken in 2006

Today there has been another animal extinction. Lonesome George, the last remaining member of the Pinta Island giant tortoise subspecies (Geochelone elephantopus abingdoni) was found dead in his enclosure this morning. He was estimated to be one hundred years old, still a young adult.

George in 2007

George's story has been rather a sad one. Pinta Island tortoises were believed to be lost to the world when a survey in the 1960's was done to see what could be done to protect the giant tortoises of the Galapagos Islands. Much to the surprise of scientists, a single tortoise was found on Pinta Island in 1971. They named him George and he was removed to a research station and much effort was put into finding him a mate to keep the subspecies alive. Despite a hefty reward, no female was ever found. Attempts to have him mate with other subspecies produced only infertile eggs.

Lonesome George has become a symbol of failing species in the years that he has lived as the last remaining member of his own species. There are many species that are in serious trouble and not far away from having a fate identical to that of George and the rest of the Pinta Island tortoises. All species play and important role in their environment and there's no way to know what impact their extinction will have until they are gone. Like Jenga, there is no way of telling how many blocks can be taken out before the entire system collapses. This is why every species is precious and vital to the welfare of ecosystems. We have had success stories in the past, and hopefully conservation will keep many species from suffering the same fate as Lonesome George.

George's cause of death has yet to be determined, and a necropsy will be performed. There are plans to have his body embalmed. The demise of his species can be attributed to hunting for food and the eating of eggs by introduced species such as rats and wild pigs.

Sources are the BBC, Huffington Post, The Independent, and Tortoise Trust. Images are from Wikimedia Commons under Creative Commons licenses: one, two.