| Aldabrachelys abrupta Temporal range:
| |
|---|---|
| |
| Carapace | |
Scientific classification
| |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Reptilia |
| Order: | Testudines |
| Suborder: | Cryptodira |
| Superfamily: | Testudinoidea |
| Family: | Testudinidae |
| Genus: | Aldabrachelys |
| Species: | †A. abrupta
|
| Binomial name | |
| †Aldabrachelys abrupta
Grandidier, 1868
[1]
| |
| Synonyms [2] | |
| |
Aldabrachelys abrupta, the abrupt giant tortoise, is an extinct species of giant tortoise that was endemic to Madagascar.
Ecology
It was a large species, roughly 115 cm in length. It was originally one of the six endemic tortoise species of Madagascar (two large Aldabrachelys; three medium Astrochelys; two small Pyxis). [3] It was sympatric with the other giant tortoise species of Madagascar, Grandidier's giant tortoise ( Aldabrachelys grandidieri (also extinct)), and both species occupied both the coasts and the cooler highlands of Madagascar, where they fulfilled the role of large grazers. A. abrupta was a browser of bushes and low-hanging branches; A. grandidieri was a grazer of grassy meadows and wetlands.
Unlike its sister species, which had a low, flattened shell, A. abrupta had a high, domed shell.
Extinction
Material of this species has been dated to 750–2850 years before present ( c. 830 BC - c. 1270 AD), and it seems to have been widely distributed throughout Madagascar. It was estimated to have gone extinct between c. 1200 - 1300 AD. However, remains with disputed dating have suggested that some survived up until at least 1500, and it seems to have survived a considerable time in coexistence with humans, before it finally died out. [4]
References
- ^ Grandidier, A. 1868. Sur les découvertes zoologiques faites récemment à Madagascar. Annales des Sciences Naturelles. Zoologie et Paléontologie, Paris (5)10:375–378.
- ^ Fritz Uwe; Peter Havaš (2007). "Checklist of Chelonians of the World". Vertebrate Zoology. 57 (2): 265. doi: 10.3897/vz.57.e30895. ISSN 1864-5755.
- ^ Kehlmaier, Christian; Graciá, Eva; Ali, Jason R.; Campbell, Patrick D.; Chapman, Sandra D.; Deepak, V.; Ihlow, Flora; Jalil, Nour-Eddine; Pierre-Huyet, Laure; Samonds, Karen E.; Vences, Miguel; Fritz, Uwe (2023-01-13). "Ancient DNA elucidates the lost world of western Indian Ocean giant tortoises and reveals a new extinct species from Madagascar". Science Advances. 9 (2): eabq2574. Bibcode: 2023SciA....9.2574K. doi: 10.1126/sciadv.abq2574. ISSN 2375-2548. PMC 9833658. PMID 36630487.
- ^ Rhodin, AGJ, Thomson, SA, Georgalis, GL, Karl, H-V, Danilov, IG, Takahashi, A, de la Fuente, MS, Bourque, JR, Delfino, M, Bour, R, Iverson, JB, Shaffer, HB, and van Dijk, PP. 2015. Turtles and Tortoises of the World During the Rise and Global Spread of Humanity: First Checklist and Review of Extinct Pleistocene and Holocene Chelonians. Chelonian Research Monographs (ISSN 1088-7105) 5(8):000e.1–66. doi:10.3854/crm.5.000e.fossil.checklist.v1.2015
External links
 | This article about a turtle is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |
| Aldabrachelys abrupta Temporal range:
| |
|---|---|
|
| |
| Carapace | |
|
Scientific classification
| |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Reptilia |
| Order: | Testudines |
| Suborder: | Cryptodira |
| Superfamily: | Testudinoidea |
| Family: | Testudinidae |
| Genus: | Aldabrachelys |
| Species: | †A. abrupta
|
| Binomial name | |
| †Aldabrachelys abrupta
Grandidier, 1868
[1]
| |
| Synonyms [2] | |
| |
Aldabrachelys abrupta, the abrupt giant tortoise, is an extinct species of giant tortoise that was endemic to Madagascar.
Ecology
It was a large species, roughly 115 cm in length. It was originally one of the six endemic tortoise species of Madagascar (two large Aldabrachelys; three medium Astrochelys; two small Pyxis). [3] It was sympatric with the other giant tortoise species of Madagascar, Grandidier's giant tortoise ( Aldabrachelys grandidieri (also extinct)), and both species occupied both the coasts and the cooler highlands of Madagascar, where they fulfilled the role of large grazers. A. abrupta was a browser of bushes and low-hanging branches; A. grandidieri was a grazer of grassy meadows and wetlands.
Unlike its sister species, which had a low, flattened shell, A. abrupta had a high, domed shell.
Extinction
Material of this species has been dated to 750–2850 years before present ( c. 830 BC - c. 1270 AD), and it seems to have been widely distributed throughout Madagascar. It was estimated to have gone extinct between c. 1200 - 1300 AD. However, remains with disputed dating have suggested that some survived up until at least 1500, and it seems to have survived a considerable time in coexistence with humans, before it finally died out. [4]
References
- ^ Grandidier, A. 1868. Sur les découvertes zoologiques faites récemment à Madagascar. Annales des Sciences Naturelles. Zoologie et Paléontologie, Paris (5)10:375–378.
- ^ Fritz Uwe; Peter Havaš (2007). "Checklist of Chelonians of the World". Vertebrate Zoology. 57 (2): 265. doi: 10.3897/vz.57.e30895. ISSN 1864-5755.
- ^ Kehlmaier, Christian; Graciá, Eva; Ali, Jason R.; Campbell, Patrick D.; Chapman, Sandra D.; Deepak, V.; Ihlow, Flora; Jalil, Nour-Eddine; Pierre-Huyet, Laure; Samonds, Karen E.; Vences, Miguel; Fritz, Uwe (2023-01-13). "Ancient DNA elucidates the lost world of western Indian Ocean giant tortoises and reveals a new extinct species from Madagascar". Science Advances. 9 (2): eabq2574. Bibcode: 2023SciA....9.2574K. doi: 10.1126/sciadv.abq2574. ISSN 2375-2548. PMC 9833658. PMID 36630487.
- ^ Rhodin, AGJ, Thomson, SA, Georgalis, GL, Karl, H-V, Danilov, IG, Takahashi, A, de la Fuente, MS, Bourque, JR, Delfino, M, Bour, R, Iverson, JB, Shaffer, HB, and van Dijk, PP. 2015. Turtles and Tortoises of the World During the Rise and Global Spread of Humanity: First Checklist and Review of Extinct Pleistocene and Holocene Chelonians. Chelonian Research Monographs (ISSN 1088-7105) 5(8):000e.1–66. doi:10.3854/crm.5.000e.fossil.checklist.v1.2015
External links
Tortoise family | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ||||
| Genera |
|  | ||
| Agrionemys | ||||
| Aldabrachelys | ||||
| Astrochelys | ||||
| Centrochelys | ||||
| Chelonoidis | ||||
| Galápagos tortoise |
| |||
| † Cheirogaster | ||||
| Chersina | ||||
| Chersobius | ||||
| † Cylindraspis | ||||
| Geochelone | ||||
| Gopherus | ||||
| † Hadrianus | ||||
| † Hesperotestudo | ||||
| Homopus | ||||
| Indotestudo | ||||
| Kinixys | ||||
| Malacochersus | ||||
| Manouria | ||||
| † Megalochelys | ||||
| Psammobates | ||||
| Pyxis | ||||
| Stigmochelys | ||||
| † Stylemys |
| |||
| Testudo | ||||
Phylogenetic arrangement of turtles based on
turtles of the world 2017 update: Annotated checklist and atlas of taxonomy, synonymy, distribution, and conservation status. Key: †=extinct. | ||||
|
| This article about a turtle is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |