The experts believed that mid 20th Century saw the majority of the tortoises in Pinta Island wiped out because of excessive hunting, and had become extinct until they found a lone male that, over a period of time would acquire the name “ Lonesome George” and become world famous. The Pinta Island tortoise (Chelonoidis niger abingdonii), also known as the Pinta giant tortoise, Abingdon Island tortoise, or Abingdon Island giant.

Until the mid-19th century, it was also home to thousands of Pinta tortoisesgiant saddleback tortoises endemic to this island. abingdonii is believed to be extinct although there is the possibility of hybrid individuals of the same species. Family: Testudinidae Scientific Name: Chelonoidis abingdonii Lifespan: 101 years C. This is how Albert Gunther described it in 1877 when he brought a certain specimen to London. The Aldabra giant tortoise ( Aldabrachelys gigantea) lives on the remote Aldabra Atoll, one of the Seychelles group of islands in the Indian Ocean It is the only living species in the genus Aldabrachelys. Pinta has long been home to Swallow-tailed Gulls, marine iguanas, Galapagos Hawks, fur seals, and a number of other unique bird, reptile, and plant species. Pinta giant tortoise (Chelonoidis abingdonii) resting in dirt Source. Tortoise Chelonoidis Nigra Abingdonii or the Pinta Island tortoise also referred to as the Abingdon Island tortoise the Pinta giant tortoise or the ‘giant’ tortoise of the Abingdon Island, originally belonged to the subspecies of the Galapagos tortoise, a native to Ecuador’s Pinta Island.