Diego the tortoise is helping save his species by having lots of sex

He literally has 800 offspring.
 By 
Sophie Hirsh
 on 
Diego the tortoise is helping save his species by having lots of sex
Tortoises "Diego", a species of the Espa?ola Island giant tortoise species, is pictured in a breeding centre at the Galapagos National Park in Santa Cruz Island, in the Galapagos archipelago, located some 1,000 km off Ecuador's coast, on June 4, 2013. Experts will try to bring back in 2014 two species of the giant tortoise believed to be extint, the Chelonoidis abingdonii species of the Pinta Island (that of Lonesome George -- the last Pinta Island giant tortoise which died in June 2012) and the Chelonoidis elephantopus presumed extinct shortly after Charles Darwin's historic voyage there in 1835, as part of a captive breeding program directed towards resurrecting the species. Genes from recently extinct species can live on in mixed ancestry creatures. AFP PHOTO / RODRIGO BUENDIA (Photo credit should read RODRIGO BUENDIA/AFP/Getty Images) Credit: RODRIGO BUENDIA/AFP/Getty Images

If you are a Chelonoidis hoodensis tortoise, there's a 40 percent chance that Diego may be your dad.

Diego the tortoise is over 100 years old, 175 pounds, and thanks to his high sex drive, the father of about 800 children.

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Diego, a tortoise of the endangered Chelonoidis hoodensis subspecies from Española Island, is seen in a breeding centre at the Galapagos National Park on Santa Cruz Island in the Galapagos archipelago, located some 1,000 km off Ecuador's coast, on September 10, 2016. / AFP / RODRIGO BUENDIA (Photo credit should read RODRIGO BUENDIA/AFP/Getty Images) Credit: RODRIGO BUENDIA/AFP/Getty Images

Diego is a Chelonoidis hoodensis, a species found primarily in Espanola, an island in the Galapagos archipelago. Approximately 2,000 tortoises reside on the island – 800 of which are fathered by Diego. That's 40 percent of the total species' population.


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As reported by Yahoo via AFP, Diego and six female tortoises reside at a tortoise breeding center on Santa Cruz Island in the Galapagos. While two other male tortoises are also supposed to help with repopulation, Diego is clearly picking up most of the slack.

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Diego, a tortoise of the endangered Chelonoidis hoodensis subspecies from Española Island, is seen in a breeding centre at the Galapagos National Park on Santa Cruz Island in the Galapagos archipelago, located some 1,000 km off Ecuador's coast, on September 10, 2016. / AFP / RODRIGO BUENDIA (Photo credit should read RODRIGO BUENDIA/AFP/Getty Images) Credit: RODRIGO BUENDIA/AFP/Getty Images

Sadly, the six female tortoises that Diego shares an enclosure with aren't getting the same recognition as Diego.

The Daily Mail writes, "A sex-mad tortoise which is over 100 years old has single-handedly saved his species from extinction."

Claiming that Diego "single-handedly" saved his species is inaccurate, as it fails to acknowledge the female tortoises who did all the hard work. The six female tortoises are the ones who grew baby tortoises in their bodies and laid eggs, while Diego just had a bunch of unprotected sex.

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We assume Diego is GGG. Credit: RODRIGO BUENDIA/AFP/Getty Images

Hopefully Diego helps his baes dig their nests and take care of the eggs while they're waiting to hatch.

[H/T: Yahoo]

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Sophie Hirsh

Sophie was a Viral Content Intern for the Watercooler channel. More writing and other stuff by Sophie can be found at www.sophiehirsh.com.

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