Lonesome George, the last surviving Pinta Tortoise (Geochelone abingdoni), , has been kept in a corral at the Charles Darwin Research Station on Santa Cruz Island in the hope that he can be encouraged to breed with two female tortoises brought from Wolf Volcano on Isabela Island.

There was much excitement recently that 5 eggs laid by one of the females might result in his first ever offspring. Alas, following the 120-day incubation period, all of these eggs were shown to be infertile, with no indication of embryo formation. This is a great disappointment for scientists and conservation efforts funded in part by our NGO partner, the Galapagos Conservation Trust.

The five eggs which were laid were placed in incubators at the Captive Breeding Center of the Galapagos National Park Service at 29.5^o C, which is the ideal temperature to develop female offspring. Six eggs from asecond nest found earlier this year are still undergoing the incubation period. However, periodic monitoring has detected that they are becoming lighter, which is probably an indication that they are also infertile. Nevertheless, it will be necessary to wait for the completion of the entire 120-day incubation period for definitive results.