Galapagos Tortoise ....k seriously ..a little help plz?

Question

yes..I DID research, lol & i didnt find what i was lookin 4, so I came to my last resort.
its on : Galapagos Tortoise

1. How long has the species been in existence?

(I think around late 1500, or is it since the 1800? I wasn't sure, or any real input wud be nice)

2.How has the organism changed or adapted over time?

3.What special adaptations does the organism have for survival?

4.How did the animal get to the Galapagos Islands?

5.From what organism on the continent is the organism on the Galapagos Island most closely related to?


I have some answers to most of the questions, But I guessed on it, so I need second opinions. So any help would be nice.

Answer 1

1. Don't know when the species started, but "In February 1535, a Spanish ship carrying Tomas de Berlanga, the Bishop of Panam sailed from Panama bound for Peru. During the voyage a great storm arose and for the next eight or nine days the ship was battered by rough seas. The crew survived, but the ship had been blown far off course. On March 10th an island was sighted which later proved to be just one of a group of thirteen major islands and many smaller islets, all of volcanic origin. The Spaniards were surprised to find many unknown species on the islands, including great numbers of giant tortoises. The sailors named the islands the 'Galápagos', deriving from the Spanish for 'saddle', referring to the distinctive shape of the saddleback species."

2. The shape of the carapace and other physical features correspond to the habitat of each of the 13 species. Larger islands with more wet highlands such as Santa Cruz and Isabela (where the Alcedo Volcano is found) with lush vegetation near the ground have tortoises with 'dome-back' shells; these animals have restricted upward head movement due to shorter necks, and tend to have shorter limbs as well. These are the heaviest and largest of the subspecies.Smaller, drier islands such as Española and Pinta are inhabited by tortoises with 'saddle-back' shells comprising a carapace elevated above the neck and flared or reverted above the hind feet, and longer, thinner limbs. This appears to allow them to browse taller vegetation. On the drier islands with tortoise populations, the Galápagos Opuntia cactus (a major source of their water) has evolved an more tree-like and taller form, giving evidence of an evolutionary arms race between progressively taller tortoises and correspondingly taller cacti. Saddleback tortoises tend to be smaller (females average 27 kg, males 54 kg) in size than their domeback counterparts

3 When a tortoise feels threatened it can withdraw its head, neck and forelimbs into its shell for protection, presenting a thick shield to a would-be predator. The legs have hard scales that provide an effective armour when withdrawn.

4 & 5.It is likely that all the present races of giant tortoise evolved in Galapagos from a common ancestor that arrived from the mainland, floating on the ocean currents. Although this seems an incredible journey it is known that Galapagos tortoises can float easily in sea water. Only a single pregnant female or one male and one female needed to arrive in this way, and then survive, for Galapagos to be colonised. It is likely that the original colonist first washed up on the shores of San Cristobal Island and from there its descendants gradually dispersed around the archipelago, carried on the ocean currents. The closest living relative of the Galapagos giant tortoises is Geochelone chilensis, a small tortoise found in Chile.

Answer 2

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RE:
Galapagos Tortoise ....k seriously ..a little help plz?
yes..I DID research, lol & i didnt find what i was lookin 4, so I came to my last resort.
its on : Galapagos Tortoise

1. How long has the species been in existence?

(I think around late 1500, or is it since the 1800? I wasn't sure, or any real input wud be nice)

2.How has the...

Answer 3

> How long has the species been in existence?
I don't know. Tens of thousands of years, most likely.

> How has the organism changed or adapted over time?
Lack of predators on the island for the adult tortoises has led to, perhaps, intraspecific selection pressure. Maybe the female tortoises preferred larger males. Maybe a larger male was more likely to overturn a smaller male, decreasing the likelihood that the smaller one would breed. (Male tortoises fight, you know. It's funny to watch. They try to flip each other over). Over many generations, the average size of the tortoises increased 'til they're the giants we see today.

> What special adaptations does the organism have for survival?
Nothing special. They're like ordinary tortoises, only bigger.

> How did the animal get to the Galapagos Islands?
The ancestral tortoise(s) probably arrived on raft(s) of vegetation from South America. Imagine a pregnant female tortoise on a bundle of roots at the river's edge leaning over to get a drink... when suddenly the bundle of roots breaks free of the bank, and the whole shebang goes out down the river and to the ocean!

5. Probably some tortoise on mainland South America.

Answer 4

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Strange how we look at these questions so differently. I see a Tortoise who can't swim and say they must have been created there and never moved from there,The evolutionist says...I don't know what do they say?, Life started at the Galapagos Islands? LOL