André the Giant Tortoise Trivia Quiz

Answer: Aldabra Atoll (Seychelles)

While the tortoises on the Galápagos Islands have more fame, there exists another branch of giant tortoises that live in the Seychelles, on the Aldabra Atoll as well as on Fregate Island. While the two colonies share many similarities, the Seychelles tortoises are related to to the tortoises of Madagascar whereas the Galápagos giant tortoises are related to the South American tortoises.

The Aldabran Atoll is the second-largest coral atoll in the world in terms of dry land. It is also a protected site, being the home to over 150,000 giant tortoises and several other vulnerable species, is one of the few islands in the world that has been largely protected from human interference and development. The tortoises live upon the raised coral island and find everything they need there.

Answer: Yes

Tortoises are believed to have reached remote locations across the planet by swimming, or rather floating with the currents, with their head above the water to breathe. They are also able to survive for up to half a year without food or water, so they can certainly get somewhere if they get swept up into the open ocean.

Answer: They get it from the food they eat

Giant tortoises feed on plant matter like grass, stems, leaves, and fruit (although no fruit is native to the island of Aldabra). They also eat insects, worms, and are also opportunistic meat eaters, when they come across other dead animals (even other dead tortoises).

They are able to get enough water from the moisture contained in the food they eat though an occasional rainfall is also a welcome treat to drink.

Answer: Over 100 years

The life expectancy for a giant tortoise is estimated to be over 100 years. An accurate number, however, is difficult to pin down; giant tortoises live longer than the people who are observing them! Adwaita, an Aldabran giant tortoise, lived in a zoo in Kolkata and, when he died in 2006, his age was estimated to be 255.

However, this was not verified. The longest verified age for a tortoise was, in 2020, taken over by Jonathan, a Seychelles giant tortoise (closely related to the Aldabran giant tortoises) when he reached the ripe old age of 188, and was still going strong.

Answer: Between 9 and 25

The female Aldabran giant tortoise lays between 9 and 25 eggs. Half (or more) of these eggs are often infertile and will not produce a baby. The female can lay the eggs between the months of February and May and the eggs will hatch about eight months later.

The babies are born independent and self-sufficient, though, obviously, more vulnerable than adult tortoises. They reach full maturity after about fifty years.

Answer: Arnold's giant tortoise

European sailors were one of the main causes for widespread extinctions amongst the giant tortoise population worldwide. They valued the meat, caught the animals as novelties to be given as gifts to people, and generally exploited the animal until it was extinct for many of the subspecies. Few were able to survive the over-exploitation, the Aldabran giant tortoise being one, and the Galápagos giant tortoise and a few other subspecies on the islands there being others.

Arnold's giant tortoise was thought to be extinct but a few were found hidden away. They were taken to a special breeding facility where they were cared for and protected. When reintroduced on Silhouette Island, the population seemed to be doing well. However, a controversial decision to evict the tortoises left them looking for a new home. These tortoises were then accepted on North and Fregate islands, but, with the existing Aldabran giant tortoise population already there, scientists fear that the pure genetic Arnold's giant tortoise may be intermingled with the Aldabran within a few hundred years.

Answer: Rest in swamps

The giant tortoises tend to heat up in the sun. Being cold-blooded, that's not too surprising, but, really quite tiring for the giant tortoises. So, in the midday heat, giant tortoises tend to either dig underground burrows with their strong feet and sharp claws, or they wallow and wade in swamps to regulate their temperature. Their ideal outside temperature is 28 degrees, at which they exhibit the most activity.

Tortoises do not really sweat. If they do sweat, it comes out of their eyes as tears. This can look like foam around the eyes if they are really sweating hard.

Answer: Mornings

Since giant tortoises need to stay warm, but not too warm, at 28 degrees Celsius optimally, the morning is when they're most active. The mid-day Seychelles sun is far too warm for the giant tortoises and with their giant shells, they tend to heat up quickly. Most days are spent cooling off.

The morning, however, is a perfect fit for the giant tortoises and it's when they're most active, grazing for food and moving around.

Answer: Yes

"Island gigantism" is a phenomenon where a population of a species on an isolated island increases in size from generation to generation compared to the same species on the mainland. This is probably due to an absence of predators resulting in a lack of need to hide; when hiding, small size matters.

While once thought to be an example of island gigantism, current studies have shown that giant tortoise populations used to be widespread. However, since they were susceptible to predation and sensitive to habitat changes, many mainland species went extinct.

Answer: Noisy

Male giant tortoises spend much of the day trying to get the females to mate with them. When they climb atop a female, they let out a loud bellow to let her know that they are ready to proceed. If the female is not in the mood, mating won't happen. She must actively participate in order for the act to proceed. Males try this act often. It is thought that a tortoise bellow is so loud to convince the female that it is favourable for her to proceed.

The giant tortoises are seen as a love symbol, and it is said that if newlyweds hear the bellow of a giant tortoise, their marriage will be long and blessed with lots of, ummm, love.