Project Pinta: Restoration of Lonesome George's Birthplace

May 2010 is a historic month for Pinta Island in Galapagos! After nearly 40 years without giant tortoises, Pinta will once again have tortoises roaming its slopes. Welcome to our Project Pinta homepage, where we will post all information and interesting links related to the return of tortoises to Lonesome George’s original home.

PROJECT PINTA BLOGS

We are lucky to have so many skilled scientists involved in this endeavor. Share in their experiences on Pinta by following these blogs:

Re-Tortoise Pinta BLOG
Elizabeth Hunter, a State University of New York—College of Environmental Science and Forestry graduate student, heads up this blog. She’ll be living on Pinta for 2.5 months with three other students—they’ll monitor the health and behavior of the tortoises. Guest contributions from other scientists, including GC’s Science Advisor Linda Cayot, will also be posted.

Dr. Joes’ Giant Tortoise BLOG
Dr. Joe Flanagan of the Houston Zoo championed the tortoise sterilization and preparation efforts for the 39 adult tortoises being transported to Pinta Island. He will help with the tortoise release on Pinta and ensure that all of the animals are healthy and in the best shape possible to tackle their new surroundings.

Dr. Joe Flanagan and Dr. James Gibbs (left) do a health assessment of one of the tortoises headed to Pinta. Elizabeth Hunter and her team of students (right) will remain on Pinta for 2.5 months to monitor the tortoises.

PRESS RELEASES and NOTABLE MEDIA COVERAGE

GC PRESS RELEASE PDF: May 2010 — Return of Giant Tortoises to Pinta Island

GPS and SATELLITE TRACKING MAPS for GIANT TORTOISES on PINTA

Please visit this page in mid-June 2010, when we expect to have links to tracking maps for several of the newly released tortoises on Pinta Island. Below is a photo of one of the tortoises with a satellite tracking tag mounted to its back.

THE HISTORY OF PINTA ISLAND

Pinta Island, one of the northernmost islands in the Galapagos Archipelago, is a symbol of both the potential destructive impact of humans on fragile ecosystems, as well as our growing capacity to achieve complete ecological restoration of degraded areas.

After almost 200 years of ecological decline, caused first by whalers who decimated Pinta’s giant tortoise population, and then by introduced goats, which devoured its native and endemic vegetation, scientists and conservationists are prepared to return the 60 sq. mile island to near pre-human condition.

This achievement, which will involve the repopulation of Pinta with giant tortoises, would not have been possible without technologies and conservation tools developed in Galapagos over the last 40 years, some of which were only recently refined.

Centuries of Destruction

Pinta Island has long been home to swallow-tailed gulls, marine iguanas, Galapagos hawks, fur seals and a number of other unique bird, mammal and plant species. Until the mid 19th century, it was also home to thousands of Pinta Tortoises—giant saddleback tortoises endemic to this island.

During the 1800s, whalers removed large numbers of Pinta tortoises as a food source on their long journeys. By the early 20th century, the Pinta tortoise was likely ecologically extinct, although there is evidence of fishermen slaughtering tortoises through the mid 1900s. The sole known surviving Pinta tortoise, Lonesome George, was taken into captivity in 1972; no other live tortoise has been found since. For the past 35 years, Lonesome George has remained in captivity and Pinta has been without tortoises.

With tortoises gone, fisherman introduced goats to Pinta in 1959 to ensure a source of food during their seasonal trips to the island. During the 1960s and 1970s the goat population exploded to over 40,000 causing massive destruction of Pinta’s vegetation. In the early 1970s, the Charles Darwin Foundation and Park staff began efforts to eliminate goats from Pinta and reduced the population to less than 100 individuals. However those goats remained in the rugged cliffs of Pinta where existing eradication methods were not effective.

Pinta’s Recovery

The turning point for Pinta came in 1999 when the island was used as a training ground for new methods of goat eradication that would be later put to use on a much larger scale on Isabela and Santiago Islands. After almost three decades of unsuccessful eradication attempts, the implementation of judas goat techniques (which involve the use of radio-collared goats to help locate the last remaining feral goats), aerial hunting and improved mapping and data management systems (GPS and GIS systems) quickly eliminated goats from Pinta.

Fortunately, it appears that the intense grazing pressure by goats was stopped before any of Pinta’s plant species went extinct. Moreover, an intensive coast-to-summit monitoring project carried out in 2000 and repeated in 2004 shows that vegetation recovered rapidly in the absence of goats.

There are indications, however, that some of the endemic plant species that require substantial light, such as the Darwin Astor such as the Darwin Aster, Galapagos cotton, Galapagos Snapdragon, and Galapagos Passionflower, could be negatively affected by the unchecked regeneration of Pinta’s vegetation. There is also concern that some species may decline due to the absence of large-seed dispersers. Prior to their elimination, Pinta tortoises played important roles as herbivores and by eating and later dispersing seeds from a number of plants.

Restoring Ecological Balance

For many years, conservation in Galapagos was focused on “population-based objectives.” In the case of Pinta, this meant looking for ways to save the Pinta Tortoise. While such an approach is still considered important when possible, conservation managers in Galapagos also understand that the conservation of biodiversity and evolutionary and ecological processes in the archipelago requires a broader vision, focused on the protection and restoration of islands and ecosystems.

Many botanists and herpetologists have pointed to the importance of re-establishing a tortoise population on Pinta. However, there has been considerable debate regarding how this should be accomplished. Those embracing a population-based approach have insisted that only Pinta tortoises should be used for this purpose. But given that short- and medium-term options for developing a Pinta tortoise population are considered unrealistic, a growing number of experts have called for the use of a carefully selected relative—or analog species—to repopulate Pinta.

In May of 2010, 39 sterilized hybrid adult tortoises will be transferred to Pinta Island to begin their important job of altering the landscape. These tortoises, who were all living for years in captivity at Galapagos National Park headquarters throughout the islands, will live out their remaining decades in the wild. But the plans for tortoises on Pinta do not end here.

At a later date and after carefully weighing different paths of action, the Galapagos National Park recently decided that repopulating Pinta with Española tortoises will provide the best possible means of restoring balance to Pinta’s ecosystem by establishing a population of tortoises that are capable of reproducing (unlike the sterilized hybrids). The Española tortoise comprises the taxon most closely related to the Pinta tortoise. It is also currently available through the successful breeding and rearing program of the CDF and the GNPS.

The repopulation process involving Espanola tortoises will be carried out in two phases:

Phase 1: Preparation

An ecological monitoring plan will be implemented to measure changes in the ecosystem as tortoises are re-established on Pinta. Many of these changes will occur over a period of years, if not decades, since the tortoises released will be young (approximately four years old) and the population will increase at an annual rate of 50-65 individuals. Natural reproduction on the island will begin in approximately 15-20 years.

During this phase, it will also be important to complete the eradication of remaining invasive plant species to ensure that the presence of tortoises does not result in greater dispersal and germination. Park wardens began removing the approximately 20 species of introduced plants recorded on Pinta during the goat eradication campaign of the 1990s.

Phase 2: The release of Tortoises on Pinta

The initial release of Espanola tortoises on Pinta will occur when conditions are favorable for their immediate survival (recent rains, green vegetation, etc.). Movement, diet, habitat use, dispersal and other factors will be studied intensively. In subsequent years, tortoises will be released at different locations to ensure that all favorable habitats receive tortoises directly.

Simultaneous and ongoing monitoring of tortoises, invertebrates and vegetation will be implemented as soon as tortoises are released. Technologies being considered to track the movement of tortoises on Pinta include passive integrated transponders (PITs)—durable microchips the size of a grain of rice—as well as GPS and radio telemetry technology.

With goats and invasive plants eliminated from Pinta, and a reproductive tortoise population soon to be re-established on the island, it becomes possible to re-think the fate of Lonesome George. Should he be returned to his island of origin? Decisions about Lonesome George’s future will be made in the coming years.

FUNDING FOR PROJECT PINTA

This project has been made possible by funding from the Galapagos National Park, and generous contributions of the Panaphil Foundation, Continental Airlines, Buffalo Exchange, SUNY-ESF, the Houston Zoo, a number of veterinarians who have donated their services, and approximately 1,000 Galapagos Conservancy members.

Support Galapagos Conservancy and our efforts to restore Pinta island.

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