Rare tortoises debut at Shanghai zoo

A woman examines a rare pair of Aldabra tortoises from the African country of Seychelles at Shanghai's zoo on Monday, Nov. 2, 2009. (Shanghai Evening Post Photo)

A rare pair of Aldabra tortoises donated to China by Seychelles debuted in Shanghai's zoo on Monday, about half a year early leading up to next year's Shanghai World Expo, according to the Xinmin Evening News.


A woman examines a rare pair of Aldabra tortoises from the African country of Seychelles at Shanghai's zoo on Monday, Nov. 2, 2009. (Xinhua Photo)

Aldabra tortoises, one of the known long-lived rare tortoise species in the world, can enjoy a longer life span of up to 250 years. Shanghai's two new arrivals are now about 35 years old, still very much young for their species.

To accommodate the huge reptiles - the male, 80 kilograms and the female, 50 - the Shanghai Zoo built a 70-square-meter glass room decorated with artificial banana trees and rubber plants imitating their natural habitat.

The zoo will also solicit Chinese names for the two young tortoises starting next month, the report added.

During the upcoming World Expo next May, visitors to the Seychelles expo venue in Shanghai will be able to see video of the daily life of this rare species.

A small island African nation of 85 thousand people, Seychelles is located in the western Indian Ocean, where is home to 180 thousand tortoises and some 10 million birds.

Source: CRI online