Meet The Sex Crazed Tortoise That Saved His Species
Meet The Sex Crazed Tortoise That Saved His Species
Diego may not look like a Casanova at first glance, but he’s a tortoise that can look back over his 100 or so years on Earth with a sense of well-earned pride. Originally from the famed Galápagos, this giant tortoise fortunately developed an eye for the ladies and the reproductive prowess to go with it. Conservative estimates say he’s fathered at least 350 offspring, while others chalk up to 800 to his name. To put that number in perspective, back in the ’70s, there were only around a dozen Chelonoidis hoodensis left in the world. Some experts worry that Diego’s starring role in the species’ comeback spells trouble thanks to a lack of genetic diversity, while others say populations springing from only a few loins has brought back a species before and will do so again.
