Creatures in Crisis
Photograph of Hood Island giant tortoise (Chelonoidis hoodensis), recorded as Critically Endangered
Hood Island giant tortoise (Chelonoidis hoodensis). Image via Wikimedia Commons.

Critically Endangered

Hood Island giant tortoise

Chelonoidis hoodensis

Hood Island giant tortoise is a tortoise in the family Testudinidae — Chelonoidis hoodensis, recorded as Critically Endangered.

Status
Critically Endangered
Scientific name
Chelonoidis hoodensis
Taxonomy
Testudines · Testudinidae · Chelonoidis

The tortoise

Hood Island giant tortoise is a tortoise in the family Testudinidae — Chelonoidis hoodensis.

Range and habitat

C. N. Hoodensis is native to Española Island, the southernmost of the Galápagos Islands of Ecuador, and used to be endemic to the island, but conservation efforts have since introduced a population of juveniles to the nearby Santa Fe Island, whose native tortoises are extinct. Española island has an area of 60.5 km2 (23.4 sq mi), of that 10% is inhabited by the tortoise and another 40% is potentially capable of sustaining tortoise habitation. The tortoise mainly inhabits rocky, brushy areas of the island.

The Hood Island giant tortoise, also known commonly as the Española giant tortoise, is a subspecies of Galápagos tortoise native to Española Island in the Galápagos.

Pins are Wikidata “endemic to” fields. Orange dots, when present, are GBIF occurrence tiles — survey bias included.

In crisis

This population was very heavily exploited by whalers in the 19th century and collapsed around 1850. 13 adults were found in the early 1970s and held at the Charles Darwin Research Station as a breeding colony. Mating had not occurred naturally for some time, because the individuals were so scattered that they did not meet. Following the successful captive breeding program, large numbers have been released back into the wild and are now breeding on their own with the population reaching over 2,300 individuals as of August, 2020.

The massive decline in population led to the 1996 assessment of the subspecies for the IUCN Red List to deem it critically endangered.

Hood Island giant tortoise is Critically Endangered on this catalog because that is the IUCN category stored on Wikidata. Confirm the official criteria and any later count on iucnredlist.org.

Sources

Written for this catalog from the English Wikipedia article on Hood Island giant tortoise, Wikidata item Q2391334. Family and order context is original field-guide writing about the group, not a copied assessment of this one species. Wikipedia text is CC BY-SA. Not an IUCN assessment. Counts, when quoted, can change — confirm them on the recovery programme and on iucnredlist.org.

Photograph via Wikimedia Commons. Wikipedia · Wikidata · IUCN Red List.

Same genus

Photograph of Chelonoidis donfaustoi (Chelonoidis donfaustoi), recorded as Critically EndangeredCR

Chelonoidis donfaustoi

Chelonoidis donfaustoi
Photograph of Chelonoidis guentheri (Chelonoidis guntheri), recorded as Critically EndangeredCR

Chelonoidis guentheri

Chelonoidis guntheri
Photograph of Fernandina Island Galápagos tortoise (Chelonoidis phantastica), recorded as Critically EndangeredCR

Fernandina Island Galápagos tortoise

Chelonoidis phantastica
Photograph of Santiago Island giant tortoise (Chelonoidis darwini), recorded as Critically EndangeredCR

Santiago Island giant tortoise

Chelonoidis darwini

Quick answers

What is Hood Island giant tortoise?
Hood Island giant tortoise is a tortoise in the family Testudinidae — Chelonoidis hoodensis.
What is the conservation status of Hood Island giant tortoise?
Critically Endangered, as the IUCN category stored on Wikidata for Chelonoidis hoodensis. Confirm the official assessment on iucnredlist.org.
Where does Hood Island giant tortoise live?
C. N. Hoodensis is native to Española Island, the southernmost of the Galápagos Islands of Ecuador, and used to be endemic to the island, but conservation efforts have since introduced a population of juveniles to the nearby Santa Fe Island, whose native tortoises are extinct.
Why is Hood Island giant tortoise in crisis?
Following the successful captive breeding program, large numbers have been released back into the wild and are now breeding on their own with the population reaching over 2,300 individuals as of August, 2020.
Is this the IUCN Red List page for Chelonoidis hoodensis?
No. This is a researched catalog account. The Red List is the assessment.
Is Hood Island giant tortoise a pet?
An animal on this catalog is in crisis in the wild. Keeping one is usually the wrong question.