NASA helps return giant tortoises to Galapagos after nearly 150 years

On February 20, conservation partners released 158 giant tortoises on Floreana Island, the first time the species has been on the island in more than 150 years; NASA satellite data was used to map habitat and forecast conditions up to 40 years.

Conservation partners released 158 giant tortoises on Floreana Island on February 20, marking the species' return to the island after more than 150 years. The tortoises had been extirpated in the mid-1800s after heavy hunting by whalers and impacts from invasive predators. Researchers used NASA satellite observations to map vegetation, rainfall, temperature and terrain and to forecast habitat suitability decades into the future. The release follows a breeding program that used animals with Floreana ancestry identified from DNA linked to specimens found at Wolf Volcano. Key facts: - 158 giant tortoises were released on Floreana Island on February 20, the first such release there in over 150 years. - Historical hunting and introduced predators drove the species off the island in the mid-1800s, altering Floreana's ecology. - NASA data sources named in the effort include Landsat, the Global Precipitation Measurement mission, and Terra to map current conditions and project habitat up to 40 years ahead. - Millions of field observations of tortoise locations across the archipelago were combined with satellite data to produce habitat suitability maps. - The released animals come from a breeding program initiated after researchers found tortoises on Isabela Island with Floreana ancestry confirmed by DNA from historical bones. - The release is part of the Floreana Ecological Restoration Project, which includes monitoring the tortoises and efforts to remove invasive rats and feral cats and to reintroduce additional native species. Summary: Restoring giant tortoises aims to rebuild core ecological functions on Floreana by reintroducing a long-missing keystone species and guiding placement with long-range habitat forecasts. Researchers will monitor how the animals adapt and whether the satellite-selected sites match modeled predictions, while invasive-species control and further reintroductions remain part of the project's stated plans.