Adwaita

Adwaita was a very special tortoise that lived in the Alipore Zoological Gardens in Kolkata, India. He was an Aldabra giant tortoise and was thought to be one of the oldest animals in the world when he passed away in 2006. People believed Adwaita may have been around for more than 250 years!

There is an interesting story about how Adwaita might have come to live with Robert Clive at his home in Barrackpore. Clive was a leader who won a big battle called the Battle of Plassey in 1757. Some say he received four tortoises after that victory, and Adwaita might have been one of them. However, this part of the story has not been proven.

In the late 1800s, around the years 1875 or 1876, Adwaita was moved to the Alipore Zoo by Carl Louis Schwendler, the person who started the zoo. Adwaita stayed in his enclosure there until he passed away on March 22, 2006. His very long life made him famous around the world.

Description

Adwaita was a very big tortoise, weighing 250 kg (551 lb). He lived alone and had no babies. He ate wheat bran, carrots, lettuce, soaked chickpeas, bread, grass, and salt.

Age

Adwaita the tortoise passed away on March 22, 2006, after his shell cracked and an infection spread inside him. People believe Adwaita was around 255 years old when he died, though this has not been proven. If true, he would have been the oldest tortoise ever known, much older than other famous tortoises like Harriet, Tu'i Malila, and Jonathan.