She just may be the world’s oldest mother. At age 80, a Giant Galapagos tortoise named Nigrita laid nine eggs that recently hatched at the Zurich Zoo.
Nigrita is the zoo’s oldest resident (having arrived there in 1946) and is part of a breeding program aimed to save the endangered tortoises from extinction.
Even though she’s 80, the zoo says that Nigrita is probably in her best years to lay eggs. The hatchlings’ dad is Jumbo, who is 440 pounds, is a young 54 years old.
The tiny babies took two months to hatch under the watchful eyes of caretakers.
The hatchlings have a long life ahead of them. Galapagos tortoises can live up to 150 to 200 years old.
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