Latest news with #tortoise
The Sun
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- The Sun
Tortoise becomes oldest new father in the world after becoming dad for first time… aged 135
A TORTOISE slow to become a father has had his first child — aged 135. Goliath, a Galapagos tortoise weighing 517lb, had never had kids despite trying with a number of females over the years. 3 3 3 But one of eight eggs laid in January by his long-term partner Sweet Pea hatched just in time for Father's Day after 128 days of incubation. The hatchling was born at Zoo Miami in Florida on June 4. It is the first Galapagos tortoise to be bred there. The zoo is now hoping Guinness World Records will recognise Goliath as the oldest first-time dad. With Sweet Pea possibly aged 100, she may be the oldest first-time mum too. Goliath is believed to have hatched in the Galapagos around 1890. He was acquired by New York's Bronx Zoo in 1929 before moving to Zoo Miami in 1981.
Telegraph
13-06-2025
- General
- Telegraph
Owner's shock as ‘male' tortoise lays eggs
A tortoise thought to be a male for 41 years has laid four eggs. Jill Mancino, 84, was left in shock after a trip to the veterinarian revealed that her pet, named Speedy, was actually a female. Mrs Mancino and her husband, from Undy in Monmouthshire, never questioned Speedy's gender and had always assumed it was a boy because it would 'chase us around the garden and headbutt our shoes'. The couple believed this was the tortoise exhibiting male tendencies in order to attract a female. However, after Speedy began digging holes in the garden and stopped eating, a trip to the vet left Mrs Mancino stunned as it was revealed that Speedy was a female. An X-ray also confirmed there were four eggs inside her shell. Mrs Mancino said she had joked to her husband that Speedy may be 'egg bound', but said she had been left in 'total shock' after the revelation. Speedy, living true to her name regardless of her gender, had laid two eggs by the time she had returned home from the vet, and then another two when let out into the garden. The eggs were then placed in a large flower pot to protect them. Mrs Mancino said she believes Speedy may have mated with a friend's male tortoise while they were on holiday last summer. However, tortoises can lay eggs without them being fertilised, and the vet suggested the male may have 'stimulated her hormones' to lay eggs.
BBC News
12-06-2025
- General
- BBC News
'Male' tortoise lays eggs leaving owners in shock after 40 years
Speedy was always assumed to be male by her owners of 41 years, so when she laid four eggs, they were shocked. Jill Mancino said the tortoise "displayed male tendencies" of "head butting" and "mounting various objects in the garden", but after a play date with their friend's male tortoise, everything changed. Jill, 84, from Undy in Monmouthshire, said Speedy "began behaving strangely" by digging holes in the garden and not eating. A vet trip revealed the Greek spur-thighed tortoise was in fact female and pregnant. Speedy, 44, has lived with Jill and her husband for almost half a century, and spends her time relaxing or sunbathing in the garden. Jill said in May they rushed Speedy to the vet after she looked "distressed". "By the time I got him home, he had laid two eggs - she I should say - then when I put her out in the garden she laid four more," she said. "I couldn't believe it, I was in total shock."Jill said she buried all four eggs in a large flower pot covered by a plastic box to protect them. Jill said they had looked after their friend's male tortoise - called Katie - while they were on holiday last summer. "That's the only time Speedy has been with another tortoise," she said. "Whether they have been fertilised I really don't know."She said the vet suggested Katie's presence may have "stimulated her hormones". They have to wait eight to 10 weeks for the eggs to incubate to see if there are any baby tortoises. Tortoises can live anywhere from 25 to 100 years depending on their species and to Chessington Garden Centre, Greek spur-thighed tortoises usually live for at least 50 years, if not reaching 80 to 100 years old."I think Speedy's going to outlive us so I don't think we'd have the babies," Jill said.
The Sun
11-06-2025
- General
- The Sun
Family stunned to find their pet Joey the tortoise is actually a girl after 95 YEARS
A PET tortoise thought to be a boy for 95 years turned out to be a girl. Joey finally came out of her shell at a vet's examination shortly before her death from a stomach tumour last week. 2 The African spurred tortoise was bought from high street chain Woolworths in 1930 by Louise Dimmock, as a gift for son Alan. Joey spent the next nine decades being passed down through the family — ending up with Alan's granddaughter Lorraine Steward. The cabin crew trainee, 43, said: 'We always thought he was a boy until we took him to the vets to be examined before his death. 'We knew something was wrong as he wasn't taking his food. 'He had never needed to go to the vet before and it's difficult to check the gender. They were stunned he had done so well. 'They were examining him and revealed, 'I'm led to believe he's actually a girl'. 'We couldn't believe it. Maybe he was more of a Josephine than a Joey all this time. But after knowing him as a boy for 95 years, we're not going to change now.' Joey, who ate lettuce and strawberries, was well-known among locals in Whitwell, Herts. Lorraine added: 'We will all miss him greatly. He lived a simple life. He was very low maintenance and happy as anything.' 2 Giant tortoise found again after it was believed to be extinct for a century 21 PMs AND NINE POPES OVER her 95 years Joey never strayed any further than her home village, even surviving a German shell landing in the garden during World War Two. She also lived through: Twenty-one prime ministers. Five monarchs, stretching back to George V, left. Sixteen Presidents of the US. Nine popes. World War Two. Twenty-one England football managers — and one World Cup victory. And 22 Olympics.
Daily Mail
02-06-2025
- General
- Daily Mail
Tortoise who escaped to find a mate nearly a year ago at a speed of 0.13mph is found... just ONE mile away
A tortoise who escaped 11 months ago to find a mate at a speed of 0.13mph has been found just one mile away from home. Ginger dug under a garden fence before making a slow getaway across countryside fields in the quest for love, following the death of her longtime companion Fred. She was eventually found behind a pub by a horse rider last week in Stanton, Gloucestershire. Sarah-Jane Muirie, 51, is now celebrating the unexpected return of her beloved pet who she has owned since she was a 10-year-old girl. Devastated by Ginger's disappearance last June, the mother-of-one had initially put up signs around the area but said that she had given up hope after nearly a year without a single sighting. Fearing that she would 'never see' the reptile again after she vanished, Ms Muirie, of Bredon, Worcestershire, said: 'We had another tortoise called Fred who we lost a couple of years ago and a vet friend of mine believes she went looking for a mate. 'It's that time of the year and she's always had Fred so she's dug herself out under the garden fence and through next doors before getting into some fields. 'She is that well camouflaged we thought there's no chance we would ever find her but we put up missing posters anyway.' Almost 11 months after Ginger disappeared, Ms Muirie got the call she was never expecting - a horse rider had discovered the small tortoise behind the Mount Inn pub, just a mile away from home. Initially, given her natural camoflauge, Ginger had been mistaken for a rock. However, after returning to the scene, the horse rider then noticed both a head and legs. Ms Muirie, who believes that her beloved pet was likely in hibernation for at least part of her disappearance, said: 'Amazingly, somebody remembered the posters we put up nearly a year ago and we then got the call. 'At first I thought it couldn't be Ginger but then realised there's probably not too many people around here with tortoises. 'It was amazing to get her back because we thought there was no chance she would survive the winter out there alone.' I genuinely couldn't believe that she survived a year of the wild.' Since being reunited with her family, Ginger has been enjoying the warm weather, finding herself a secluded area where she can sunbathe and eat food. Describing her tortoise's return as 'like a childhood dream come true', Ms Muirie added: 'To have a pet for 40 years, she could outlive me so it means a lot. We're very happy to have her back.' At the end of April, a family in Ulverston, Cumbria, were overjoyed when their tortoise Leonardo, who had been missing for nine months, was discovered a mile away from home. The reptile was found shuffling down a street and was taken to a pet shop, Little Beasties, where staff helped to find its owner, Rachel Etches. Speaking to the BBC, Ms Etches said: 'It was totally my fault; we were out in the garden, we'd just had our second child, I got a bit distracted and he just wandered off out of our sight. 'He's led a very comfortable life for 13 years under a heat lamp in my house, so we didn't think he was going to survive the winter being out for the first time.' She believed that Leonardo may have hibernated for winter and woke up when the weather started to improve. There are an estimated 700,000 tortoises and turtles currently being kept as pets across the UK, with an average of 1.6 per cent of households owning one.
