A giant tortoise species was believed to be extinct for 113 years, only for it to be discovered again in GalΓ‘pagos, 2019. theguardian.com/environmeβ¦
The story of Aeschylus. An ancient greek tragedian who was told as a boy he would die by a falling object. In 455 BC he was killed when an eagle dropped a tortoise from the sky hitting him in the head. ancient-literature.com/grβ¦
Eric Goode, the director of Tiger King, is a lifelong conservationist who protected over 65,000 acres of habitat for endangered turtles and tortoises through his his non-profit, the Turtle Conservancy. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eriβ¦
Robert Clive, a British Governor and General in India had a pet tortoise named Adwaita. Clive died in 1774. Adwaita died in 2006, 232 years later at the age of c.255. She was born before the 7 Years War, the founding of the USA and the French Revolution. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adwβ¦
All tortoises are in fact turtlesβthat is, they belong to the order Testudines or Chelonia, reptiles having bodies encased in a bony shellβbut not all turtles are tortoises. api.nationalgeographic.coβ¦
Some animals like Crocodiles, alligators and a few tortoises and turtles do not age physically, and can not die of physical old age. They die of deceases, accidents, predators, and other causes. awesci.com/crocodiles-do-β¦
Two Soviet tortoises (#22 & #37) went around the Moon 3 months before the first astronauts. The two live occupants of Zond 5 reportedly suffered no ill effects, even after their capsule suffered a ballistic reentry that would have been fatal to cosmonauts. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zonβ¦
In the 17th century, Francesco Redi performed an experiment that involved removing the brain of a land tortoise, which then proceeded to live six months. Redi also cut the head off a tortoise entirely, and it lived for 23 days. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Torβ¦
On the 19th of March 2016, the oldest known living land-animal the Giant Tortoise Jonathan (184) received its first bath in recorded history. youtu.be/ozVoDxddKlg?t=7
A bird called the lammergeier eats tortoises after weakening their shells by dropping them from great heights. In 455 BC a man was killed by a tortoise dropped by the bird after the bird mistook his bald head for a giant rock. oddee.com/item_99118.aspx
A Giant Tortoise, the last confirmed sighting of which, was in 1906, was discovered in 2019. The female Tortoise was discovered on Fernandia, an active shield volcano on the Galapagos Islands. nationalgeographic.com/anβ¦
Today I learned of the gΓΆmbΓΆc, a convex three-dimensional homogeneous shape that when resting on a flat surface has just one stable and one unstable point of equilibrium. The balancing properties of the gΓΆmbΓΆc are associated with the "righting response" β β of shelled animals such as tortoises and beetles. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/G%Cβ¦
Queen Elizabeth II, the longest serving British monarch, met Tuβi Malila the tortoise, the worldβs oldest tortoise on record who lived to be 189. wikipedia.org/wiki/Tu%27iβ¦
Gaze following is instinctual for many animalsβincluding humans, chimps, dogs, goats, dolphins, and even the red-footed tortoise. Dogs glance back and forth between human and where the human is looking. The behavior, only seen before in humans and chimps, is called check backs or double looking. nationalgeographic.com/neβ¦
The gopher tortoise is a species of turtle native to the southeastern United States. The gopher tortoise is seen as a keystone species because it digs deep burrows that provide shelter for at least 360 other animal species, often preserving their lives during conflagrations. nature.org/en-us/about-usβ¦
Condoms were used internationally for hundreds of years, in China, oiled silk paper was the material of choice, while the Japanese favored tortoise shell we Brits opted for animal intestine... maxim.com/.amp/maxim-man/β¦
Today I learned of Aeschylus, an ancient Greek tragedian, who died in 456 or 455 BC when an eagle dropped a tortoise on his bald head mistaking it for a rock suitable for shattering the shell of the reptile. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aesβ¦
A man tried to smuggle tortoises disguised as pastries. He was stopped in the "nothing to declare" line and failed to fool officials at the Berlin airport by saying the Moroccan tortoises were chocolate. Smuggling Moroccan tortoises carries a fine of up to $56K or jail up to 5 years. foxnews.com/travel/man-faβ¦
The sound effects for the velociraptors in Jurassic Park were created by modifying the sounds of a goose, horse, and tortoises mating youtu.be/Y0qs5oclDkI
In the 1990s, the Galapagos Conservancy launched Project Isabela, an all out war against 250,000 goats in the Galapagos Islands to save the dwindling population of Galapagos tortoises, and involved snipers picking goats off from helicopters. It ended up restoring the population of the tortoises. allthatsinteresting.com/pβ¦
In taxonomy that all tortoises are turtles but not all turtles are tortoises. Same thing with frogs and toads all toads are frogs but not all frogs are toads. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turβ¦
Today I learned of Diego, the 'unstoppable sex tortoise' who is 100 years old, lives on the Galapagos archipelago, and has fathered over 800 tortoises bbc.com/news/av/science-eβ¦
The HMS Queen had a pet tortoise (Timothy) on board as a mascot during the Crimean War. Timothy would lead a prolific naval career living on other British ships. She died in 2004 aged aprox 160 years, making her the last living veteran of the Crimean War. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timβ¦
The Giant Tortoise did not receive a scientific name for over 300 years due to the failure of delivery of specimens to Europe for classification due to their great taste - all were eaten on the voyage back by sailors, even by Charles Darwin. qi.com/infocloud/giant-toβ¦
There's a version of "The Tortoise and the Hare" where everyone dies in a forest fire because the tortoise, having won the race and therefore seen as the fastest, is given the job of warning everyone. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theβ¦
Tortoise jelly is available in some tea shops in China with big gold or silver pots. Called gwei ling go in Cantonese, the genuine stuff is made from powdered tortoise shell and can be as expensive as 300 HK dollars for a rice bowl's worth appetiteforchina.com/reciβ¦
The velociraptors' raspy barks from Jurassic Park were actually cut from raunchy turtle bits. "It's somewhat embarrassing, but when the raptors bark at each other to communicate, it's a tortoise having sex," Jurassic Park sound designer Gary Rydstrom told NY Mag. gizmodo.com/jurassic-parkβ¦
Aeschylus, the ancient Greek tragedian, was supposedly prophesied to die from a falling object, and therefore stayed outdoors. He was killed when an eagle dropped a tortoise on him, mistaking his bald head for a rock. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aesβ¦
In 458 BC Aeschylus, an ancient Greek tragedian, was killed by a tortoise dropped by an eagle that had mistaken his bald head for a rock suitable for shattering the shell of the reptile. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aesβ¦
The Imperial Tortoise Beetle (Stolas imperialis) is indigenous to Brazil and bears a striking resemblance to a turtle. They are among the most brilliantly colored among beetles, and native populations are known to use them as jewelry. They are generally less than half an inch in length. allspecies.fandom.com/wikβ¦
Tortoises don't have a diaphragm so use their legs to contract and constrict their lungs. Essentially Tortoises use their legs to breath so holding them still would cause them to suffocate. tortoise-protection-groupβ¦
Jonathan; a Tortoise Living on St. Helena, is the oldest confirmed living terrestrial animal on Earth. He is 186. When he was born George Washington had only been dead 33 years...and Abraham Lincoln was 22 years old. telegraph.co.uk/good-newsβ¦
Aeschylus, an Athenian tragedian, stayed outdoors in an attempted to avert a prophecy saying that he would be killed by a falling object. He was killed by tortoise dropped on his head by an eagle who mistook it for a rock. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lisβ¦
Giant tortoises on whaling voyages were stored helplessly on their backs for up to six months before being killed and eaten. While alive, they drank gallons of water at a time and kept it in a special bladder, making a properly-butchered tortoise a source of cool, perfectly drinkable water. qi.com/infocloud/giant-toβ¦
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