poor George!
Lonesome George (last of his kind)
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it's a pitty that such things happens, but the only thing I can say is that human intervenience is 'nt always lucky for these animals ! A very good article indeed, but more people has to read this !!!
Friendly greetings,
Herman
Yes, I agree!
Nice article , pics would have been appreciated.
Ill get one up there.
I can relate to George, I am also the last of my kind. There aren't too many six foot rabbits roaming around anymore. Seriously, It saddens me to hear that beautiful creatures such as George may never be seen again. Everyone is so into being "green" and not realizing that the extinction of animal species is also impacting our planet in terrible ways. It makes me happy however, to know that people like you exist to inform others about these types of problems. A large part of the problem is apathy for the plight of animals in this same predicament. Our earth is changing rapidly and I hope that we will adapt and take a more active role to live in harmony with all of Earths living things.
Poor George, indeed!
ADK
Lol nice. Well everyone talks being "green" but they never really do anything except say they are "green" and care. So I dont think theres many that are truly "green". And thank you very much. I hope so too but at the rate we're going it doesnt look very good. I still dont think we will ever be in complete harmony with the Earth and all that lives within it to be honest. I just wished people would open their eyes and realize whats going on. Lots of species now are getting closer to extinction right in front of us and we're not worrying or even caring. It sickness me! But I too am glad their are people that care such as you.
This is the deadest thread on chess.com. UNTIL NOW
Lonesome George is the last known individual of the Pinta Island Tortoise, subspecies Geochelone nigra abingdoni, one of eleven subspecies of Galápagos tortoise native to the Galápagos Islands. He has been labelled the rarest creature in the world, and is a potent symbol for conservation efforts in the Galápagos and internationally. It is thought that he was named after a character played by American actor George Gobel.
George was first seen on the island of Pinta on 1 December 1971 by American snail biologist Joseph Vagvolgyi. The island's vegetation had been decimated by introduced feral goats, and the indigenous G. n. abingdoni population had been reduced to a single individual. Relocated for his safety to the Charles Darwin Research Station, George was penned with two females of a different subspecies, Geochelone nigra becki from Wolf Island, in the hope that his genotype would be retained in the resulting progeny. Any offspring successfully hatched from George and his consorts would be intergrades, not purebreds of the Pinta subspecies.
George is estimated to be 60–90 years of age, and is in good health. A prolonged effort to exterminate goats introduced to Pinta is now complete and the vegetation of the island is starting to return to its former state.
In May 2007, analysis of genomic microsatellites (DNA sequences) suggested that other individuals of Geochelone nigra abingdoni may still exist. Researchers have identified one male tortoise from the neighboring Galápagos island of Isabela which has half his genes in common with George's subspecies. This animal must be a first generation intergrade between the subspecies of the islands Isabela and Pinta.It is possible that a pure Pinta tortoise lives among the 2,000 tortoises on Isabela.
Attempts at mating Lonesome George were unsuccessful for several decades, possibly due to the lack of a female of his own subspecies, and prompted researchers at the Darwin Station to offer a $10,000 reward for a suitable mate. On July 21 2008, it was reported that George had unexpectedly mated with one of his female companions. A total of thirteen eggs were collected and placed in incubators.However, on November 11 2008, The Charles Darwin Research Center reported that 80% of the eggs showed weight loss characteristic of being infertile. To the disappointment of the Darwin Center, by December 2008 the remaining eggs had failed to hatch and x-rays had showed them to be infertile.