#LA PINTA ISLAND TORTOISE TRIAL#

Simulations of aggregated tortoise-vegetation interactions indicate that greater tortoise densities could reduce woody plant encroachment through herbivory and trampling. The last known Pinta, a hundred-year-old, beloved tortoise dubbed Lonesome George, died in 2012 and was mourned around the world as symbol of global extinctions. Habitat selection differed between phenotypes, with the saddlebacked type most closely replicating Pinta tortoise ecosystem services through selection of areas with high densities of adult Opuntia cactus.

#LA PINTA ISLAND TORTOISE TRIAL#

A trial group of 39 adult, non-reproductive, mixed ancestry tortoises were introduced to Pinta Island in May 2010, and their behaviors and interactions with the plant community were monitored following release. The new study suggests that the number of species may need to be updated after the tortoises of San Cristbal were reassessed. Ecological analog giant tortoises could replicate some lost services, but it is unclear whether they will be effective or how best to implement them. Of these, 13 species are currently alive, while the Pinta Island tortoise went extinct in 2012 after the last of its species, Lonesome George, died. The semi-arid ecosystem on Pinta Island, Galápagos, has experienced woody plant encroachment, likely due to the loss of ecosystem services once provided by the Pinta tortoise and the effects of now eradicated invasive goats. Université de soutenance : State University of New York

Titre : Ecosystem restoration through the introduction of ecological analog giant tortoises to Pinta Island, Galapagos

La pinta island tortoise