Guinness World Record: 190-year-old tortoise Jonathan is world’s oldest living tortoise
Guinness World Record: 190-year-old tortoise Jonathan is world’s oldest living tortoise
Time and again, we have come across world records that are being made either for being fastest, tallest, longest, or heaviest. Often these world records leave us amused and many times they put audiences in shock. However, we rarely come across a record that has ever been made for being the oldest.
Of course, the oldest human being is very common in world records, but have you ever heard of “world’s oldest living land animal”? Yes, you read that right. In an incredibly rare incident, a 190-year-old tortoise named Jonathan has etched his name in the Guinness Book of World Records for being the world’s oldest living animal.
Jonathan is a Seychelles giant tortoise, who is residing at St Helena Island, British Overseas Territory. Now taking to their official Instagram account, the Guinness World Record shared now and then pictures of Jonathan.
While sharing the historic pictures, the record-keeping site penned down a lengthy note in the caption and revealed that Jonathan was born in 1832. In the record books, he has been titled as the oldest chelonian.
Guinness World Records wrote in the caption, “Jonathan, the world’s oldest living land animal, has earned another Guinness World Records title! Celebrating his 190th birthday this year, Jonathan is now the oldest tortoise ever. Jonathan is believed to have been born c. 1832, thus making him 190 years old in 2022. His official record title is oldest chelonian – a category which encompasses all turtles, terrapins, and tortoises.”
The first picture seems to be taken in the present and is a close-up of Jonathan. In the second monochrome picture, four men can be seen standing in the backdrop of two giant tortoises.
According to the official site of the Guinness World Records, Jonathan arrived at St Helena Island at the age of 50 in 1882.
Moreover, Jonathan’s amazingly lengthy life has so far spanned seven British monarchs, 53 British prime ministers, and 40 US presidents, in total. For those who don’t know, before Jonathan, the greatest age among animals recorded for a chelonian was 188 years for a Madagascar radiated tortoise (Astrochelys radiata).
In the 1770s, British explorer Captain James Cook presented this Madagascar radiated tortoise to the Tonga Royal Family. The animal was named Tui Malila and lived with the royal family until it left the world for its heavenly abode in 1965. Well, indeed Jonathan has not only seen the history but has lived it.
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