Giant Tortoises Return to Floreana Island After 150-Year Absence

A group of 158 hybrid giant tortoises was released on Floreana Island in the Galápagos to restore an ecosystem where the species was extinct for nearly 150 years.Fredy Villalba and Washington Tapia led the effort to reintroduce animals carrying up to 80% of the genetic makeup of the original Chelonoidis niger.This release begins a project to bring 700 tortoises to the volcanic island, a UN World Heritage Site, after two centuries of destruction caused by humans.