Lonesome George 'wasn't lonely after all'
By Alexander Martinez (AFP) – 2 days ago

QUITO — When Lonesome George, the last Pinta Island giant tortoise, died in June in the Galapagos, the world mourned the demise of a species. It appears, however, that George was not that lonely after all.

There are at least 17 tortoises on the Galapagos Islands that have similar genetic traits to George, including some that may be from his same genus, the Galapagos National Park said in a statement.

George's June 24 death "does not represent the end of the Chelonoidis abingdonii species of Pinta Island giant tortoises," the statement said.

The Galapagos, located some 1,000 kilometers (620 miles) off Ecuador's coast, is an archipelago of 13 islands and more than 100 rocks and micro-islands. The islands were uninhabited when Europeans first visited in the 16th century, and today has a population of around 25,000.

Lonesome George, who was believed to be 100 years old when he died, was discovered on Pinta Island in 1972 at a time when tortoises of his type were believed to be extinct.

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