Volcán Wolf giant tortoise
The Volcán Wolf giant tortoise (Chelonoidis niger becki), also known commonly as the Wolf Volcano giant tortoise[1] and the Cape Berkeley giant tortoise, is a subspecies of Galápagos tortoise in the family Testudinidae. The subspecies is native to the north side of Ecuador's Isabela Island (formerly Albemarle Island). Chelonoidis becki has links to two different lineages including that of Chelonoidis darwini from the nearby island of Santiago.[4] C. becki has been found to be the product of a double colonization event beginning around 199,000 years ago, and had been formed through introgression, where greater male selectivity was exhibited by purebred females in one of the lineages.[5] It is most commonly found on the northern, western, and southwestern slopes of Volcán Wolf,[6] the volcano that it is named for. Having evolved to live in a specific environment, C. becki only occupies an estimated range of about 263 square kilometers.[1] An estimated 1,150 Volcán Wolf giant tortoises inhabit Volcán Wolf.[7]
| Volcán Wolf giant tortoise | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Adult Volcán Wolf giant tortoise | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Reptilia |
| Order: | Testudines |
| Suborder: | Cryptodira |
| Superfamily: | Testudinoidea |
| Family: | Testudinidae |
| Genus: | Chelonoidis |
| Species: | |
| Subspecies: | C. n. becki |
| Trinomial name | |
| Chelonoidis niger becki (Rothschild, 1901) | |
| Synonyms[3] | |
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Etymology
The specific name, becki, is in honor of American ornithologist Rollo Howard Beck.[8]
Diet
C. becki has a vegetarian diet.[1]
References
- Caccone, A.; Cayot, L.J.; Gibbs, J.P.; Tapia, W. (2017). "Chelonoidis becki". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2017: e.T9018A82426296. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2017-3.RLTS.T9018A82426296.en. Retrieved 13 November 2021.
- "Appendices | CITES". cites.org. Retrieved 2022-01-14.
- Species Chelonoidis becki at The Reptile Database www.reptile-database.org.
- Emerson, Brent C.; Faria, Christiana M. A. (2014). "Fission and fusion in island taxa – serendipity, or something to be expected?". Molecular Ecology. 23 (21): 5132–5134. doi:10.1111/mec.12951. PMID 25330853. Retrieved 2021-03-25.
- Garrick, Ryan C.; Benavides, Edgar; Russello, Michael A.; Hyseni, Chaz; Edwards, Danielle L.; Gibbs, James P.; Tapia, Washington; Ciofi, Claudio; Caccone, Adalgisa (2014). "Lineage fusion in Galápagos giant tortoises". Molecular Ecology. 23 (21): 5276–5290. doi:10.1111/mec.12919. PMID 25223395. Retrieved 2021-03-25.
- "Galapagos Giant Tortoises". people.rit.edu. Retrieved 2018-06-22.
- "See Shells: The 10 Remaining Galápagos Tortoise Subspecies - WebEcoist". WebEcoist. 2012-06-26. Retrieved 2018-06-22.
- Beolens B, Watkins M, Grayson M (2011). The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. ISBN 978-1-4214-0135-5. (Chelonoidis nigra becki, p. 21).
Further reading
- Rothschild W (1901). "On a New Land-Tortoise from the Galapagos Islands". Novitates Zoologicae 8: 372. (Testudo becki, new subspecies).
