Congratulations, a Galápagos turtle and Mommy, who lives in the Philadelphia Zoo, a mother for the first time for a long time.
Mother, Who has been living in the zoo since 1932He put 16 eggs in November. Since then, the first successful ovulation for the species in the zoo opened in 1874.
Of course – he received help from Abrazzo, a male turtle, who was estimated to be about a century.
Both members of the Western Santa Cruz subtypes are the oldest animals in the Philadelphia Zoo. However, Galápagos said that the turtles could live up to 200 years.
The zoo appeared on February 27 in a statement on Thursday. Others watched in days, the last one on March 6 eggs.
The zoo is expected to be open to the public as of April 23rd. According to Lauren Augustine, the Herpetology Director of the Zoo, they are doing “fantastic”. (Hercepology refers to the examination of reptiles and amphibians.)
“They’re the size of a tennis ball, and it’s actually quite feisty, Aug said Augustine.
The arrival of puppies is important because Western Santa Cruz Galápagos turtles, Association of International Nature. According to the Philadelphia Zoo, before the new arrivals, there were only 44 Western Santa Cruz giant turtles in all zoo in the United States.
Baby turtles will probably not share the same physical field as their parents. Imposing Dimensions – Abrazzo 410 Pounds and Mother 280 Pounds – The risk of crushing offspring.
Unlike his wife, Abrazzo is not a parent for the first time. In 2011, it was part of a successful match. Unexpected discovery of five puppies In his previous house, Columbia, Riverbanks Zoo and Garden on SC
Abrazzo came to the Philadelphia Zoo on the advice of the Zoo and Aquariums Association, which describes him as a potential genetic match for the mother.
Abrazzo and Mommy were introduced in 2022 and the mother began to lay eggs in 2023. Now he has left four rounds of eggs. The first three rounds were not applicable. But the fourth.
After putting the eggs, the staff of the zoo weighed and measured them and adjusted them to incubate artificially at two different temperatures: one is a higher temperature known to produce female offspring and produce men.
The four puppies born this year are all women, but Mrs. Augustine said three additional eggs are still incubated.
“This is a witness through excellent care that he should take in that institution, S Stephen Duars, Professor of Zoology of Zoology of Georgia, said. “It is not easy to hold a giant tropical turtle in the northern hemisphere.“
The beds will be kept under captivity for at least five years. After that, the zoo will determine what to do with them, Advisory with Zoo and Aquariums Association. A genetic match for other turtles could enter another zoo, or they could live their days in the wild nature of the Galápagos Islands on the coast of Ekvador. However, Rachel Metz, Vice President of Animal Welfare of the Philadelphia Zoo, will carry this risk.
“They are extremely risky from natural disasters, potentially illness, climate change and invading species. ”
Centuries ago, Galápagos turtle population was counted as hundreds of thousands of people, but it decreased in time as it hunted for human consumption. But in the last half century, the population has returned to about 17,000 Due to protection and reproductive programs.
Population forecasts for Western Santa Cruz turtle vary to a great extent, but Galápagos worked intensively with the turtles. Stephen Blake, a biology associate professor at the University of Louis, says it is thousands of. The population seems to be stable and growing.
Since the population is small and the reproduction under captivity is very rare, Juan Manuel Vazquez, a biologist who tries to aging in long -term animals, will give researchers a rare chance from a young age. Including Galápagos Turtles.
“Every additional turtle is important,” he said.
Dr. Blake, Galápagos turtles in the wild nature of 100 reproduction is not rare, he said. Considering this, it is not likely to have a significant impact on the protection efforts of offspring at the Philadelphia Zoo, but they can generally help raise awareness about giant turtles.
“I think this reproduction will not do much for those in the wild nature, ”he said. But indirectly, the zoo can encourage the wonder of a baby producing 100 -year -old reptile for the first time and use it as a tool to encourage the wonder among people, then it can better use it as a better tool, then. “
