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Lonesome George has two new female friends from the island of Española who are believed to be closer genetically to the world's most famous tortoise than the previous two females from Isabela Island.

Twenty years ago, in an attempt to achieve successful reproduction by Lonesome George, the Galapagos National Park (GNP) decided to put two tortoises from Isabella, in George's corral. This decision was based on advice from various herpetologists. These females were selected due to their morphology, which was similar to Pinta tortoises, given that no genetic studies of Galapagos tortoises existed at that time.

However, in recent years, with the collaboration of Yale University, detailed genetics studies of Galapagos tortoises have been completed. The results of these studies indicate that although the Isabella females were morphologically similar, they are, in fact, hybrid tortoises and as such not the most ideal tortoises to mate with Lonesome George. The studies also showed that tortoises from Española are the closest genetically to Pinta tortoises (Chelonoidis abingdoni).

Therefore, they are the most compatible and will provide greater potential for reproduction with Lonesome George, with the goal of obtaining individuals with a high percentage of Pinta DNA. The two Española females have lived in captivity since the beginning of the Española breeding program. They now share a corral with Lonesome George and GNP officials are hopeful that it will be possible to obtain hatchlings sired by Lonesome George during the next reproductive season.

The breeding season is just starting and the nesting season will begin in late June. However, it is still possible for the Española females to lay eggs fertilized by Española males, so the DNA of any offspring would have to be analyzed before knowing if Lonesome George was indeed a new father.

Andrew Marr, BBC broadcaster and President of the Galapagos Conservation Trust is wearing his blue shoes in support of the Trust's 'Blue-footed Booby Day', on Friday 18 June, which is part of the wider  BBC Wildlife Fund's  Wear Wildlife to Work Day.

One of the highlights of the appeal is a live fundraising extravaganza Wild Night In on Sunday 20 June, on BBC Two from 8-10pm.

Kate Humble, supporter of the BBC Wildlife Fund and a presenter of Wild Night In, said: "I hope everyone will join in and support the BBC Wildlife Fund appeal, and celebrate the wonder of our natural world through conservation - whether it's restoring humble habitats for dormice or saving majestic species such as sharks.  "Let's all go truly wild and help bring our most vulnerable wildlife back from the brink of extinction."

Amy Coyte, Director of the BBC Wildlife Fund, said: "Never has the need to help save species and restore wild places been more urgent. Working with charities taking positive action across the globe we hope to make a real difference for wildlife."

The BBC Wildlife Fund's first live appeal programme, Saving Planet Earth, was broadcast in 2007. The appeal raised a total of just under £2 million, which has been used to help save threatened species ranging from albatrosses and Galapagos penguins to slow worms and spiders.
Other success stories include securing a vital land corridor for rare African elephants in Namibia and a programme of rabies prevention vaccinations for Ethiopian wolves. In the UK, the BBC Wildlife Fund has helped to restore the habitat of the Adonis blue butterfly in Sussex and supported an innovative survey to safeguard the future of Bechstein's bat, one of the UK's rarest mammals.

All of the money donated by the public will be used to support wildlife conservation. Money raised will be distributed via grants to UK registered charities involved in conservation work around the world and also on our doorstep.

Wildlife enthusiasts of all ages can take part in the appeal and celebrate the diversity of life on Earth. A special fundraising pack, full of ideas of how to go 'Wild for Money' at school, work or home, is available from the BBC Wildlife Fund's website Wild for Money

In recent weeks 39 tortoises have been released into the wilds of Pinta Island, in the northern waters of the Galapagos Archipelago, as part of an ongoing effort to restore the ecological integrity of Pinta ecosystems. This release follows years of planning and will be the first time that tortoises will inhabit the island since the removal of Lonesome George, the last known Pinta tortoise, in 1972.

The return of tortoises to Pinta is considered an essential step towards re-establishing ecological processes on the island. The Ministry of the Environment of Ecuador oversaw this groundbreaking work and the tortoises' release was carried out by a team of park rangers, herpetologists, botanists, and vets--from the Galapagos National Park (GNP), Galapagos Conservancy, the State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry (SUNY-ESF), and the Houston Zoo.

GCT has supported this work and are also funding the ongoing monitoring of giant tortoises on Santa Cruz Island to understand more about their migratory patterns and behaviour.

Giant tortoises on Pinta are thought to have numbered between 5,000 to 10,000 before pirates and whalers began removing them for food. As a result of the over-exploitation in past centuries, tortoises were believed to be extinct on Pinta during much of the twentieth century. The discovery of Lonesome George on Pinta in 1971 surprised scientists and park managers alike. George was transported to the Charles Darwin reserach Station on Santa Cruz Island in the spring of 1972 to ensure his safety and he remains one of Galapagos' most famous residents.

While park rangers, scientists and the thousands of tourists who have visited Lonseome George hope that one day a mate will be discovered -- on Pinta, in a zoo, or in a private collection -- no female Pinta tortoise has yet been found. There was excitement in 2008 and 2009 when his two female companions - both from Wolf Volcano on Isabela island - both laid eggs, but sadly all of these were infertile.


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The work to help save the Floreana mockingbird, Darwin's inspiration, featured in the first episode of BBC 2's documentary programme, Museum of Life.

The Floreana mockingbird is the flagship of Project Floreana, a five year plan to save this rare species and restore Floreana, its native island. Project Floreana is a key element of GCT's 15 Steps to Help Save Galapagos. In addition to supporting the Charles Darwin Foundation (CDF) in Galapagos for this work, GCT has awarded a grant of £16,470 to the Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust to help fund a field worker jointly managed by CDF in Galapagos.

GCT's chief executive, Toni Darton, said: "The Critically Endangered Floreana mockingbird  Mimus trifasciatus helped inspire Darwin to develop his theory of natural selection. This iconic bird now only exists on two small offshore islands.  A recent population estimate gives a total of approximately 470 birds. This is why this work is of the upmost importance and we are delighted to be working with both DWCT and CDFon this project."

The reintroduction of the mockingbird forms part of Project Floreana, a new multidisciplinary restoration project in Galapagos. This remains one of GCT's flagship projects and we were delighted to raise over £150,000 towards this in its first year. Project Floreana is uniquely different from previous large scale conservation efforts in Galapagos.  It represents the first time that such a project will be carried out on an inhabited island, albeit with a small population of 120.

Most importantly, the plan requires integrating the human population into conservation actions. The Floreana inhabitants are the guardians of the island, and any restoration programme needs to proceed in step with the inhabitants´ wishes. GCT is also funding various strands to help local people understand and get involved with the conservation needs of Floreana.

In November 2009, a group of vets, working with the Galapagos National Park (GNP), prepared 39 hybrid tortoises that they hope will be the pioneer group to initiate the return of tortoises to Pinta Island. Project Pinta is a multi-year project aimed at the restoration of Lonesome George's native island following the successful eradication of goats on Pinta in 2003. It was made possible thanks to funding from a number of organisations including the Galapagos Conservation Trust and the US based Galapagos Conservancy.

While complete island restoration will require the eventual repopulation of Pinta with a reproductive tortoise population, scientists and managers are awaiting the final results from genetic analyses of a massive sampling of tortoises before making the final selection of which tortoises to use.

To initiate the return of tortoises, critical ecosystem engineers during this important period of recovery for the island's vegetation, this special group of tortoises will be released onto Pinta. To ensure that this group of hybrid tortoises will not compromise any future efforts to reestablish a reproductive population, the veterinariy team sterilised them and placed them in quarantine in preparation for their release.