Happy Thursday, lovelies! It's your local druid Ashe, here once again to serve you some F A C T S. Take a break from the horny™!

Requested by u/stewo1, today's featured creature is the endangered Galápagos giant tortoise(Chelonoidis niger). Weighing up to 417 kg (920 lb), it is not only the largest tortoise, but also the largest terrestrial ectothermic ("cold-blooded") animal on Earth!

After the death of Lonesome George, the last Pinta Island Tortoise (C. n. abingdonii), 12 subspecies are known. The animal has many varying traits, depending on subspecies and location. Overall they can be placed into two main groups: "Dome-backed" and "Saddle-backed". Dome-backs live on humid islands, have short necks, and grow larger. Saddle backs have an upwars curve in the shell which allows them to extend their neck! But living on dry islands, they tend to be smaller. All subspecies have their conservation status listed as "Vulnerable" or worse by the IUCN.

Charles Darwin recognized these varying features (and others) during his second exposition on the Beagle in 1835. This, in addition to his observations of finches, actually helped Darwin shape his theory of evolution by natural selection, much of which is still utilized by our modern understanding of biology!

Being such slow creatures, birds have been spotted resting on their shells. Turns out that these animals have formed a mutualistic relationship, in which the birds pick off ticks and other parasites from the tortoise's skin! In return, the little bird gets a snack~!

Got a creature you want to see featured? Whether it be an animal, plant, fungus, protist, or even a microbe, leave a comment and maybe I'll write about it~! That includes extinct critters too!