Swansea zoo welcomes coin-sized baby tortoise

By MiNDFOOD

April 13, 2021

April 13, 2021

An unexpected bundle of joy has arrived for the team at Plantasia Zoo in Swansea, Wales with the discovery of a new addition to their Egyptian Tortoise family.

Egyptian Tortoises are listed as a critically endangered species by the IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature).

Originally, these tortoises could be found in both Libya and Egypt, however, destruction of the Egyptian tortoise’s natural habitat, particularly in Egypt where it is now listed as extinct in the country, has become a major contributing factor to its overall extinction.

Plantasia’s Zoo and Education Manager, Michael Colwill, explained “The tortoises can retain fertilised eggs for up to four years.”

The males and females are totally separated from each other at the zoo, therefore, mating must have taken place before the tortoises arrived at the zoo for conservation.

Michael went on to explain he “suspects the egg was buried without knowing, so this new addition was completely unexpected.”

The adorable surprise baby tortoise is not much bigger than the size of a 50p coin and is totally independent from the moment it was born.

The baby tortoise currently doesn't have a name, and it’s not yet known if it is a boy or a girl, so Plantasia have a competition on Facebook for the public to enter to give the tortoise a name for life.

Where: Swansea, United Kingdom
When: 11 Apr 2021
Credit: Joann Randles/Cover-Images.com

**Editorial Use Only** — An unexpected bundle of joy has arrived for the team at Plantasia Zoo in Swansea, Wales with the discovery of a new addition to their Egyptian Tortoise family. Egyptian Tortoises are listed as a critically endangered species by the IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature). Originally, these tortoises could be found in both Libya and Egypt, however, destruction of the Egyptian tortoise’s natural habitat, particularly in Egypt where it is now listed as extinct in the country, has become a major contributing factor to its overall extinction. Plantasia’s Zoo and Education Manager, Michael Colwill, explained “The tortoises can retain fertilised eggs for up to four years.” The males and females are totally separated from each other at the zoo, therefore, mating must have taken place before the tortoises arrived at the zoo for conservation. Michael went on to explain he “suspects the egg was buried without knowing, so this new addition was completely unexpected.” The adorable surprise baby tortoise is not much bigger than the size of a 50p coin and is totally independent from the moment it was born. The baby tortoise currently doesn't have a name, and it’s not yet known if it is a boy or a girl, so Plantasia have a competition on Facebook for the public to enter to give the tortoise a name for life. Where: Swansea, United Kingdom When: 11 Apr 2021 Credit: Joann Randles/Cover-Images.com **Editorial Use Only**

A zoo in Wales has welcomed a surprise addition to its family of animals, with a baby Eqyptian tortoise born at Plantasia in Swansea.

It’s exciting news for the zoo’s conservation team, which is working towards protection of the species. Egyptian tortoises are listed as critically endangered by the IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature).

The tortoises can retain fertilised eggs for up to four years. With the males and females separated from each other at the zoo, it’s believed mating took place before the tortoises arrived at Plantasia.

Plantasia’s Zoo and Education Manager, Michael Colwill says the team “suspects the egg was buried without knowing, so this new addition was completely unexpected”.

The adorable baby is barely larger than a 50p coin. The tortoise doesn’t have a name yet and the sex is not yet known.

Plantasia is running a Facebook competition for the public to suggest a name for the new addition, which is expected to live for around 70-100 years.

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Swansea zoo welcomes coin-sized baby tortoise

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