Pinzón Island giant tortoise

Chelonoidis niger duncanensis, commonly known as the Pinzón Island giant tortoise, is a subspecies of Galápagos tortoise endemic to Pinzón Island in the Galápagos.^[1]

Pinzón Island giant tortoise
Conservation status
Vulnerable  (IUCN 3.1)[1]
CITES Appendix I (CITES)[2]
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Reptilia
Order:	Testudines
Suborder:	Cryptodira
Superfamily:	Testudinoidea
Family:	Testudinidae
Genus:	Chelonoidis
Species:	C. niger
Subspecies:	C. n. duncanensis
Trinomial name
Chelonoidis niger duncanensis (Garman, 1966)[3]
Synonyms
Testudo duncanensis Garman, 1917 Geochelone nigra duncanensis Garman in Pritchard, 1996

Population history

Although relatively undisturbed by whalers, fairly large numbers of tortoises were removed by expeditions in the latter half of the 19th century and the early 20th. After the introduction of black rats (Rattus rattus) and brown rats (Rattus norvegicus)^[4] some time before 1900, no natural breeding succeeded. Since 1965, eggs have been transported to the Charles Darwin Research Station for hatching and rearing. Over 75% of those released between 1970 and 1990 survived.^[5] There are currently around &&&&&&&+532 known individuals, which live in the southwestern side of Pinzón Island.

Description

This saddle-backed species is one of the smallest of the Galápagos tortoises. Its brownish-gray, oblong carapace has only a very shallow cervical indentation, the anterior marginals little to much upturned, and the slightly serrated posterior marginals flared and upturned. The carapace is usually compressed or narrowed anteriorly.