Aldabra Tortoise for sale

The Aldabra tortoise for sale (Aldabrachelys gigantea) is a species of tortoise in the family Testudinidae and genus Aldabrachelys. The species is endemic to the Seychelles, with the nominate subspecies, A. g. gigantea native to Aldabra atoll. It is one of the largest tortoises in the world.

Historically, giant tortoises were found on many of the western Indian Ocean islands, as well as Madagascar, and the fossil record indicates giant tortoises once occurred on every continent and many islands with the exception of Australia and Antarctica.

Many of the Indian Ocean species were thought to be driven to extinction by over-exploitation by European sailors, and they were all seemingly extinct by 1840 with the exception of the Aldabran giant tortoise on the island atoll of Aldabra.

Although some remnant individuals of A. g. hololissa and A. g. arnoldi may remain in captivity, in recent times, these have all been reduced as subspecies of A. gigantea.

The carapace of A. gigantea is a brown or tan in color with a high, domed shape. The species has stocky, heavily scaled legs to support its heavy body. The neck of the Aldabra giant tortoise is very long, even for its great size, which helps the animal to exploit tree branches up to a meter from the ground as a food source.

Similar in size to the famous Galápagos giant tortoise, its carapace averages 122 cm (48 in) in length. Males have an average weight of 250 kg (550 lb).

The main population of the Aldabra giant tortoise resides on the islands of the Aldabra Atoll in the Seychelles. The atoll has been protected from human influence and is home to some 100,000 giant tortoises, the world’s largest population of the animal.

A peculiar habitat has coevolved due to the grazing pressures of the tortoises: “tortoise turf”, a comingling of 20+ species of grasses and herbs. Many of these distinct plants are naturally dwarfed and grow their seeds not from the tops of the plants, but closer to the ground to avoid the tortoises’ close-cropping jaws.