The first substantiated case of trans‐oceanic tortoise dispersal

2006/12/28 by Justin Gerlach, Catharine Muir, C. E. Muir +1 · 12 citations
Environmental Science · #Turtle Biology and Conservation #Ichthyology and Marine Biology #Marine Ecology and Invasive Species

paper · doi:10.1080/00222930601058290

Abstract

Abstract In December 2004 an Aldabra giant tortoise Dipsochelys dussumieri was washed ashore on the coast of east Africa, probably having been carried off the shore of Aldabra atoll, 740 km away. Although trans‐oceanic dispersal is assumed to be the mechanism by which tortoises and many other animals became established on islands throughout the world, this is the first direct evidence of a tortoise surviving such a sea‐crossing. Keywords: Dipsochelys dussumieri tortoisetrans‐oceanic dispersalAldabraTanzania Acknowledgements The authors wish to thank the Turtle Conservation Officers from Kimbiji village, Jumanne Juma and Saidi Jumbe, who discovered the tortoise and reported the find.

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