Sat 03 December 2022:
The Seychelles gigantic tortoise Jonathan is celebrating this weekend as he gets ready to celebrate his 190th birthday on Sunday on Saint Helena, where he has lived since 1822 and where Napoleon, the vanquished French emperor, passed away a year earlier.
Jonathan gained notoriety and earned a spot in the Guinness World Records as the oldest living land animal and the oldest chelonian, an order that includes terrapins, tortoises, and turtles, ever since he arrived as a gift to the governor of the south Atlantic island.
He led a celebrity lifestyle and was depicted on the local five penny coin’s back.
Based on shell measurements, it is believed that Jonathan was hatched around 1832 and was brought from Seychelles to the UK overseas territory 50 years later.
Jonathan and friends on Saint Helena in about 1886. Photograph: PA.“Jonathan’s age is an estimation based on the fact that he was fully mature, and hence at least 50 years old when he arrived in Saint Helena from Seychelles in 1882. In all likelihood, he is even older than we think,” the Guinness World Records notes.He has been living a comfortable retirement life in Plantation House, which is the St Helena governor’s official residence, where different events are being organised all weekend, which includes the issue of a special stamp, to mark his birthday.
“When you think, if he was hatched in 1832 – the Georgian era – my goodness, the changes in the world. The world wars, the rise and fall of the British Empire, and the many governors, kings and queens that have passed, it’s quite extraordinary. And he’s just been here, enjoying himself,” Jonathan’s main care taker and retired veterinarian Joe Hollins said.
The birthday celebrations will conclude with a “birthday cake” made from Jonathan’s favorite foods. The oldest living tortoise, according to his keepers, has a special fondness for lettuce, carrots, pears, cucumbers, and apples.
Jonathan was recognized by Guinness World Records as the oldest alive land animal in the world in the first few months of 2022, and in December, he was also recognized as the oldest tortoise ever.
SOURCE: INDEPENDENT PRESS AND NEWS AGENCIES
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