Birthday boy of the day: Jonathan the turtle, the oldest land animal, turns 190

Based on the measurements of its carapace, experts calculate that Jonathan was born around 1832 and five decades later was taken to the remote British territory in the South Atlantic, from the Seychelles islands, where it originated.

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But his age is only an estimate: a photograph taken soon after his arrival on St Helena in 1882 shows that he was already at least 50 years old, but certainly older.

today is the birthday of Jonathan, a 188-year-old turtle who was born when the concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere was 280 parts per million (today it is 415 ppm) https://t.co/meByNwgZAn pic.twitter.com/fcImJbK2Dr
— Bernardo Esteves (@besteves) July 3, 2020

Now, the turtle lives a comfortable retirement at the official residence of the governor of Saint Helena, where his birthday will be celebrated throughout the weekend with events that include the issuance of a special stamp. 🎂

Earlier this year, Jonathan was awarded a title in the Guinness Book of Records for the world's oldest living land animal, and this month it was also named the world's oldest turtle.

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