Aldabrachelys gigantea (SCHWEIGGER, 1812)
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Higher Taxa | Testudinidae, Testudinoidea, Testudines (turtles) |
Subspecies | Aldabrachelys gigantea arnoldi (BOUR 1982) Aldabrachelys gigantea daudinii (DUMÉRIL & BIBRON 1835) Aldabrachelys gigantea gigantea (SCHWEIGGER 1812) Aldabrachelys gigantea hololissa (GÜNTHER 1877) |
Common Names | E: Aldabra Giant Tortoise [gigantea] E: Daudin’s Giant Tortoise [daudinii] E: Seychelles Giant Tortoise [hololissa] E: Arnold’s Giant Tortoise [arnoldi] |
Synonym | Testudo gigantea SCHWEIGGER 1812 (nomen protectum) Testudo indica SCHNEIDER 1783 (ex errore), DEKAY in HARLAN 1827: 292 Testudo dussumieri GRAY 1831 (nomen suppressum) Testudo elephantina DUMÉRIL & BIBRON 1835: 110 Testudo gigantea SCHWEIGGER 1812 (ex errore) DUMÉRIL & BIBRON 1835: 120 Testudo Elephantina — DUMÉRIL & BIBRON 1854: 221 Testudo Gigantea — DUMÉRIL & BIBRON 1854: 221 Testudo indica BELL — SOWERBY 1872 Testudo ponderosa GÜNTHER 1877: 35 Testudo hololissa GÜNTHER 1877 (part.) Testudo sumeirei SAUZIER 1892: 396 Testudo daudinii DUMÉRIL & BIBRON 1835 (ex errore) SAUZIER 1895: 2 Testudo gigantea elephantina — ROTHSCHILD 1897 Testudo gouffei ROTHSCHILD 1906: 753 Testudo gigantea daudinii — MERTENS & WERMUTH 1955 Aldabrachelys gigantea — LOVERIDGE & WILLIAMS 1957: 259 Aldabrachelys gigantea — BOUR 1980 Dipsochelys elephantina — BOUR 1982: 117 Megalochelys gigantea — OBST 1985 Geochelone gigantea — ERNST & BARBOUR 1989: 250 Aldabrachelys elephantina — BROADLEY & HOWELL 1991: 8 Geochelone gigantea — VALVERDE 2004 Dipsochelys elephantina — DEVAUX 2004 Dipsochelys dussumieri — VALVERDE 2004 Geochelone dussumieri — FRITZ & HAVAS 2006 Dipsochelys elephantina — BONIN et al 2006 Geochelone gigantea — ZUG 2009 Aldabrachelys gigantea — BALMER et al. 2010 Aldabrachelys gigantea — SKUBOWIUS 2012 Aldabrachelys gigantea gigantea — TTWG 2012 Aldabrachelys gigantea — SPAWLS et al. 2018: 36 Aldabrachelys gigantea gigantea — TTWG 2021 Aldabrachelys gigantea arnoldi (BOUR 1982) Testudo elephantina DUMÉRIL & BIBRON 1835 (ex errore) — DUMÉRIL 1854: 197 Testudo vosmaeri — DUMÉRIL & BIBRON 1854: 221 (?) Testudo indica SCHNEIDER 1783 (ex errore) — GRAY 1855: 6 Testudo vosmaeri FITZINGER 1826 (ex errore) — GRAY 1855: 6 Testudo daudinii DUMÉRIL & BIBRON 1835 (ex errore) — GÜNTHER 1877: 33 Dipsochelys arnoldi BOUR 1982 Dipsochelys arnoldi — LÜCKER 2000 Dipsochelys arnoldi — BONIN et al 2006: 223 (uncertain species) Dipsochelys dussumieri arnoldi — TTWG 2010 Aldabrachelys gigantea arnoldi — TTWG 2012 Aldabrachelys gigantea arnoldi — TTWG 2021 Aldabrachelys gigantea daudinii (DUMÉRIL & BIBRON 1835) Testudo daudinii DUMÉRIL & BIBRON 1835: 125 Testudo daudinii — DUMÉRIL & BIBRON 1854: 221 Dipsochelys daudinii — LÜCKER 2000 Dipsochelys daudinii — RHODIN et al. 2010 Dipsochelys dussumieri daudinii — TTWG 2010 Aldabrachelys gigantea daudinii — TTWG 2012 Aldabrachelys gigantea daudinii — TTWG 2021 Aldabrachelys gigantea hololissa (GÜNTHER 1877) Testudo hololissa GÜNTHER 1875: 296 (nomen nudum) Testudo elephantina DUMÉRIL & BIBRON 1835 (ex errore) — GÜNTHER 1877: 21 Testudo hololissa GÜNTHER 1877: 39 (part.) Testudo gigantea SCHWEIGGER 1812 (ex errore) ROTHSCHILD 1897: 407 Testudo daudinii DUMÉRIL & BIBRON 1835 (ex errore) ROTHSCHILD 1915: 433 Dipsochelys elephantina (DUMÉRIL & BIBRON 1835) — BOUR 1994: 85 Dipsochelys hololissa — LÜCKER 2000 Geochelone hololissa — FRITZ & HAVAS 2006 Dipsochelys hololissa — BONIN et al 2006 Dipsochelys dussumieri hololissa — TTWG 2010 Aldabrachelys gigantea hololissa — TTWG 2012 Aldabrachelys gigantea hololissa — TTWG 2021 |
Distribution | Aldabra Atoll (Indian Ocean, Grande Terre, Picard, Malabar), introduced on Curieuse and Fregate (granitic Seychelles). Small groups exist on Cerf, Moyenne, Silhouette, Cousin, Cousine, Bird and Denis in the central Seychelles, on several of the Amirantes, and on Changu Island near Zanzibar (Tanzania). Type locality: Aldabra [same for Testudo elephantina DUMÉRIL & BIBRON 1835] gigantea: Aldabra Atoll arnoldi: Granitic Seychelles (extinct; see GERLACH & CANNING 1998 for a discussion) daudini: Granitic Seychelles (extinct since ~1850) hololissa: Granitic Seychelles (but see GERLACH & CANNING 1998 for a discussion). |
Reproduction | oviparous. |
Types | Neotype: USNM 269962 for Testduo gigantea from Aldabra Atoll. Holotype: MNHN-RA 9564, male; paratypes: MNHN-RA 7872, BMNH [arnoldi] Holotype: MNHN-RA 7640. Only two known specimens are referred to this species: the holotype (lacking collection data) and a juvenile in alcohol (MNHN-R 1942; BOUR 1984; GERLACH & CANNING 1998). Synonymy after GERLACH & CANNING 1998 [daudini] Syntype: BMNH 1888.3.20.1 (syntype of T. hololissa, listed as Aldabrachelys gigantea gigantea) [hololissa] |
Diagnosis | Additional details, e.g. a detailed description or comparisons (2133 characters), are available for collaborators and contributors. Please contact us for details. |
Comment | Synonymy modified after GERLACH & CANNING 1998, TTWG 2012, ICZN 2316 (2013). Bour & Pritchard 2009 considered Aldabrachelys a synonym of Chelonoidis. Nomenclature: OPINION 2316 (Case 3463) has resolved that A. gigantea is the name of this species and T. dussumieri is suppressed. See Frazier et al. (2009) and Chambers et al. (2010) for details. Conservation: Note that species of Cylindraspis represent a different lineage and are only known as being subfossil (C. borbonica, C. vosmaeri [extinct 1795], C. peltastes, C. triserrata (Mauritius) and C. inepta; see Austin et al. 2002). Cylindraspis indica has been extinct since 1760 (fide JOSEPH-OUNI 2005). A. g. hololissa appears to live only in captivity now (i.e. the species is extinct in nature). A. g. daudini is presumed to be extinct now as it has not been collected since ~1830. A. g. hololissa and A. g. arnoldi appear to live only in captivity now (i.e. the subspecies are extinct in nature). A. g. daudini is presumed to be extinct now as it has not been collected since ~1830. Cylindraspis indica and C. vosmaeri have gone extinct around 1840 and 1795, respectively (TTWG 2010). Le & Raxworthy 2017 discuss the evolution and dispersal of Cylindraspis sp. and related species. We have deleted Aldabrachelys abrupta GRANDIDIER 1868 and Aldabrachelys grandidieri VAILLANT 1885 from our list as they are both extinct now (TTWG 2017). Aldabrachelys gigantea (= Dipsochelys dussumieri) is the only member of the genus Aldabrachelys which is still found in the wild (all other species are either extinct or are maintained exclusively in captivitiy). Bourne and Coe (1978) estimated that 150,000 individuals survived on Aldabra, although resource depletion (Gibson and Hamilton, 1984) and competition with goats have since caused population declines. Aldabran tortoises were recently introduced to Curieuse Island (1978–1982) and Fregate Island (1968–1973) in the Seychelles as a conservation strategy and tourist attraction (Hambler, 1994). Aldabrachelys gigantea daudinii = Dipsochelys dussumieri daudinii has been extinct since ca. 1830-1850. Type species: Testudo gigantea SCHWEIGGER 1812 (nomen protectum) is the type species of the genus Aldabrachelys LOVERIDGE & WILLIAMS 1957: 225. |
Etymology | Named after the giant size of the species. The genus is named after the Aldabra atoll and Greek “chelys” = turtle or tortoise. Testudo dussumieri was named after Jean-Jacques Dussumier (1792-1883), a trader-shipowner in the French mercantile marine, who collected specimens from many areas. |
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