Posted on 03/23/2006 1:39:18 AM PST by lunarbicep
Adwaita, the nearly 255-year-old giant tortoise that roamed the Alipore Zoo here, has died.
The Aldabra-Seychelles tortoise had not been well for the past few days. It was found dead by zookeepers Wednesday when they went to his enclosure with medicine.
'He had developed a wound on his chest. He was not keeping well. We were keeping a close watch on him,' West Bengal Forest Minister Jogesh Burman said, mourning the death of Adwaita, meaning the peerless one or the only one.
In deference to his more than two-and-half-century's existence, this grand old resident of Kolkata was named Adwaita by Burman last year and given more green space to amble along.
The 250-kg male was a vegetarian. He was brought to the city 255 years ago by the British colonialists.
Adwaita was brought to the zoo 130 years ago after spending years in the garden of Robert Clive (1725-1774), the victor of the Battle of Plassey in 1757 who consolidated the British empire in India.
When the zoo came up 130 years ago, the tortoise was shifted to the premises.
Since then, the dark grey land tortoise has lived in a small, rocky enclosure.
Alipore Zoo director Subir Chowdhury said there were documents to prove the tortoise is about 255 years old.
'A tortoise of this species can live up to 320 years according to available records. He may even be over 300 years,' Burman said.
If only the tortoise could speak, what a tale he would have to tell!
R.I.P., Adwaita....
wow, pretty amazing.
Ping
George Washington was a teenager when this tortoise was born!
So was Helen Thomas.
pretty amazing stuff.
Tortoise ping!
*bookmark*
It's George Bush's fault.
Would be interesting if scientists find a medical breakthrough of human longevity from studying the tortoise though frankly I think its because their metabolism is so slow.
Amazing to even imagine living possibly 300 years!
Turtle older than the USA.
But to do it, you have to get a shell and walk on all fours.
Rightly positioned...he would have seen ALL of our Founding Fathers and our glorious past!!!
What a miracle of life!
Too bad.
A tortoise that Charles Darwin brought back on his voyages is still alive. Pretty cool.
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=10000081&sid=a8ZQNl.gkDoI&refer=australia
...But they don't listen to meeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee...
The Aldabra giant male tortoise of Alipore Zoological Garden is being named "Addyaita"(Adwaita), (means no second pair) by the West Bengal Forest Minister, Mr Jogesh Burman, on Wednesday.
The tortoise is believed to be more than 250 years old and was brought to the zoo in the period of Lord Wellesley in 1875. This kind of tortoise lives around the Indian Ocean.
http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2005/08/18/stories/2005081801421900.htm
Commander's Palace Turtle Soup au Sherry
10 ounces (2-1/2 sticks) unsalted butter
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 pound turtle meat, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1 cup minced celery (4 stalks)
2 medium onions, minced (2 medium)
1-1/2 teaspoons garlic, minced
3 bay leaves
1 teaspoon oregano
1/2 teaspoon thyme
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1-1/2 cups tomato purée
1 quart beef stock
NOTE: If turtle bones are available, add them to the beef bones when making the stock for this dish
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste, as needed
1/2 cup lemon juice
5 hard-boiled eggs, finely chopped
1 tablespoon minced parsley
6 teaspoons dry sherry
Melt 8 ounces (2 sticks) butter in a heavy saucepan. Add the flour and cook, stirring frequently, over medium
heat until the roux is light brown. Set aside.
In a 5-quart saucepan, melt the remaining butter and add turtle meat. Cook over high heat until the meat is brown.
Add celery, onions, garlic and seasonings, and cook until the vegetables are transparent.
Add tomato purée, lower heat and simmer for 10 minutes. Add the stock and simmer for 30 minutes. Add the
roux and cook over low heat, stirring, until the soup is smooth and thickened. Correct seasoning with salt and
pepper to taste. Add lemon juice, eggs and parsley.
Remove from heat and serve. At the table, add 1 teaspoon sherry to each soup plate.
Arnaud's Turtle Soup au Sherry
1/4 cup salt
3/4 cup fresh or frozen turtle meat
3/4 cup ground veal shank meat
6 cups veal stock
2 cloves garlic, chopped
2 bay leaves
1 pinch whole dried thyme
3 tablespoons tomato pureé
1/2 cup celery, chopped
1 cup green onions, chopped
1/2 cup white onions, chopped
1 tablespoon fresh parsley, chopped
2 lemons, halved
3 tablespoons sherry
2 eggs, hard-boiled and chopped
2 tablespoons roux
Salt and white pepper to taste
Combine eight quarts of water and half the salt in each of two large pots and bring to a boil over high heat. Place
the turtle meat in one, the veal in the other, and simmer both for 45 minutes. Remove both pots from heat, drain
the meat, and chop both meats coarsely in a food processor. Keep warm until needed.
Place the veal stock, garlic, bay leaves, and thyme in a large pot and bring to a boil over high heat. Add the
tomato pureé, vegetables, parsley and lemons, and bring back to a boil. Reduce the heat, and simmer for 10
minutes.
Add the two kinds of meat and the sherry. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for 5 minutes. Add
the eggs, and season to taste with salt and pepper. Thicken by adding small amounts of the roux.
Add a final splash of sherry to each individual bowl when serving, if desired.
Is there an unwritten rule that, at FR, Helen Thomas must be on every thread? ; )
Adwaita = without a dual.
Thanks for clearing that up for me....
January 26, 2006
http://lawprofessors.typepad.com/elder_law/2006/01/not_elder_law_w.html
Not elder law: World's oldest tortoise is ailing
From NDTV.com (India)
A giant tortoise in a Kolkata zoo believed to be 255 years old is ailing as caretakers struggle to keep it alive.
Referred to as Adwaitya meaning incomparable, it is probably the oldest living creature on Earth.
About 130 years ago Governor General Lord Clive brought it to the zoo.
The tortoise has a ventral infection and has been refusing food and drink for the past week, say veterinary doctors.
According to the Director of Alipore Zoo Dr S Choudhury it is an Aldabra giant tortoise brought to the zoo in 1875.
"The ventral side of the tortoise is cracked, vets apply appropriate medicine everyday".
Choudhury added that after a long treatment the tortoise is in better condition and hoped it will recover soon.
A Galapagos tortoise has a normal lifespan of about 250 years. Adwaitya has crossed that mark, his admirers want him to reach his three century mark.
Ping!
Potentially fatal for those of us with bad hearts.
"I crawled on a rock, I ate a piece of lettuce, I went to sleep, I woke up, I crawled onto another rock, I tucked my head in for a couple of hours, I crawled onto another rock, I ate a piece of whatever, I crawled onto another rock, I went to sleep, I woke up".......
255 years of that with no F.R.? No thanks.
And dangerous to health....
"So was Helen Thomas."
It's great to start the day with a good laugh. Thanks.
Imagine 190 years of Social Security payments.
255 y.o. maybe a lot older than that.
Tastes like expired chicken.
(I can't stand it, please forgive me but I have to post this.)
Bugs Bunny Voice: "Whatsamatta tortise? Got rigor mortis?"
No. Please not that man on the South beach diet.
How'd you like to get stuck behind THAT funeral?
Queen Salote introduces her guests to the oldest inhabitant of her kingdom - the venerable tortoise believed to have been brought as a gift by Captain Cook when he visited these "Friendly Islands" in 1777 (1953; the tortoise died in 1965)
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.
