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A huge Aldabra tortoise with a domed brown shell walking on grass.
Photo: Yotcmdr, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Aldabra Tortoise

Aldabrachelys gigantea

One of the world's largest tortoises, from the Aldabra Atoll in the Seychelles, which can weigh 550 pounds and may live 150 years.

🐢 Turtles and Tortoises
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About the Aldabra Tortoise

Aldabra tortoises are some of the largest tortoises in the world. Males can have shells over 4 feet long and weigh up to 550 pounds; females reach about 3 feet and 350 pounds. They have domed brownish-gray shells, stocky legs and long necks. They live in scrub forest, coastal dunes, mangrove swamps and grasslands on the Aldabra Atoll in the Seychelles, north of Madagascar.[1]

Quick facts

Scientific name
Aldabrachelys gigantea[1]
Size
Males: shell over 4 feet long. Females: up to 3 feet.[1]
Weight
Males up to 550 pounds; females up to 350 pounds.[1]
Lifespan
Estimated up to 150 years.[1]
Diet
Mostly grasses, shrubs and small trees, plus some invertebrates and carrion.[1]
Habitat
Scrub forest, coastal dunes, mangrove swamps and grasslands.[1]
Where it lives
The Aldabra Atoll in the Seychelles; introduced to other Seychelles islands.[1]
Group life
Grazes in herds.[1]
Babies
4 to 14 eggs in a hole; hatch after 3 to 6 months.[1]
Conservation status
Vulnerable (IUCN Red List, assessed 1996).[2]

Fun facts

  • Aldabra tortoises often outlive the scientists studying them.[1]
  • Hatchlings are only about 3 inches across.[1]
  • They dig holes or lie in water to cool off.[1]

Vocabulary

carapace
The top part of a turtle's or tortoise's shell.
plastron
The bottom part of a turtle's or tortoise's shell.
atoll
A ring-shaped coral island around a lagoon.
seed dispersal
How seeds get carried to new places, like when an animal eats fruit and drops the seeds.
vulnerable
A conservation label meaning a species faces a high risk of dying out in the wild.

See it in person

Sources

  1. [1] San Francisco Zoo & Gardens. “Aldabra tortoise.” https://www.sfzoo.org/aldabra-tortoise/ (accessed 2026-10-02)
  2. [2] IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. “Aldabrachelys gigantea (Aldabra Giant Tortoise).” https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/9010/12949962 (accessed 2026-10-02)

Facts last checked 2026-10-02.

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