Taxonomy
A baby tortoise at the Francois Leguat Tortoises and Caves Reserve, Rodrigues © L Steel
The taxonomy and systematics of the Indian Ocean giant tortoises is under review by the International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature (ICZN). The many species suggested by Walter Rothschild were 'lumped' together by the Natural History Museum’s Nick Arnold in the 1970s, then 'split' by Roger Bour in 1982.
Recent genetic studies indicate that the Aldabra and Seychelles giant tortoises were all the same species. As the Aldabra tortoise has been given many different scientific names over the years, the ICZN now has the tricky task of deciding which name is valid.
Synonyms
- Testudo gigantea
- Dipsochelys elephantina
- Dipsochelys dussumieri
- Aldabrachelys gigantea
Synonyms
- Testudo gigantea
- Dipsochelys elephantina
- Dipsochelys dussumieri
- Aldabrachelys gigantea