Can science learn anything about longevity from Jonathan the Tortoise who is 192 years old?
It hatched in 1832, five years before the coronation of Queen Victoria of England and turned 192 years old by 2024.
It has outlived seven British monarchs and 39 US presidents.
It is a Seychelles giant tortoise (Aldabrachelys gigantea hololissa) and belongs to the subspecie of Aldabra giant tortoises.
Some other publication identifies it as Seychelles giant tortoise of specie Dipsochelys hololissa, from genus Cryptodera and family Testudinidae.
It was brought from Seychelles in 1882 to the island of Saint Helena in the South Atlantic Ocean with three other tortoises which are now dead.
Measurements taken in 1886 from its picture on arrival showed that (on the left) it was 48 inches long, its current length today, meaning it was fully matured, at least 50 years old, when it was brought to Saint Helena.
The length from the right could not be determined from the picture.
That, nonetheless, helped put its birth date no later than 1832.
Its estimated weight now is between 150 kg to 200 kg and it is cared for by the government of Saint Helena.
Jonathan the Tortoise has earned a position in the Guinness Book of Records as the oldest known living land animal.
It gained fame and lavish media publicity, especially from BBC, when the governor of Saint Helena, Mark Capes, posed for photographs with it while holding the 2014 Glasgow Commonwealth relay baton from the Queen of England in Plantation House (Government House).
Its picture also appeared in the reverse side of Saint Helena’s five pence coin.
It outlived a false death announcement and allegations of being gay when one of the two tortoises brought by the governor to keep it company, Frederica, which it was fond of, was found to be another male.
Male tortoises have a concave dent in their Plastron, towards the end of their underneath shell, which allows them to mate, but Frederica has a partly damaged shell making it initially difficult to determine its sex.
Its name was subsequently changed to Frederik.
The other companion is Emily, female, and both have been seen mating, with Jonathan, moaning in the process.
They have no offsprings.
The fastest tortoise speed of 0.6 mph was set in 2015 by Bertie the Tortoise, but Jonathan can do 0.5 mph when coming for food.
Jonathan the Tortoise still maintains a good sense of hearing but turned blind from cataracts and lost its sense of smell in December, 2015.
It depends on special care from its handlers to stay alive.
There is a report of Alagba, the tortoise in Ogbomosho, western Nigeria, that lived to be 344 years before it died in 2019.
That report is however, unconfirmed.
Also unconfirmed is a report of a tortoise, Adwaita, living to 255 years before it died in 2006 in Kolkota, India.
The verified record for the oldest tortoise, before Jonathan, was by Tu’i Malila which died at the age of 189 years in Tonga in 1966.
The oldest person who ever lived was for 122 years, 164 days and confirmed by Guinness Book of World Records as Jeanne Calment (1875 –1997) from France.
Elephants, giant tortoises, giant lobsters, whales, sharks and man are known to live long in the animal kingdom.
Can slow and steady be a virtue for long life in the case of Jonathan the Tortoise and other tortoises which are known to live between 80 to 150 years?
One scientist has suggested that the secret to Jonathan’s long life is because it eats Monkey’s Ear’s Centella Asiatica leaves which are abundant in the Plantation House and in Saint Helena.
It is used to make ‘long life’ tea in China and is believed to clear toxins and boost immunity.
The leaves are rounded like a monkey’s ears from where they earned that name.
But Jonathan is not the only herbivore in Saint Helena, so that hypothesis appears to fall short of a satisfactory answer and explanation for its longevity.
The search for an answer for its longevity, therefore, continues.
photo credit: hunting, guinness, sainthelenaisland info
