Comprehensive Census Reveals 180,000 Aldabra Giant Tortoises Inhabit Seychelles Atolls

A comprehensive census conducted by the Seychelles Islands Foundation (SIF) in partnership with the University of Exeter has revealed that approximately 180,000 Aldabra giant tortoises currently inhabit the remote atolls of the Seychelles. The joint research project provides the most precise and expansive population assessment to date for *Aldabrachelys gigantea*, offering critical empirical data on one of the Indian Ocean's most iconic endemic species following decades of conservation efforts.

The census underscores the remarkable recovery of a population that faced severe near-extinction pressures during the colonial era. Historically, exploitation by mariners, habitat disruption, and the introduction of invasive predators decimated giant tortoise numbers across the Indian Ocean, leaving survivors largely restricted to the isolated and difficult-to-access coral atoll of Aldabra.

The SIF, a public trust established specifically to manage and protect the nation’s designated UNESCO World Heritage Sites—including Aldabra and the Vallée de Mai on Praslin—has spearheaded decades of monitoring and habitat preservation. Working alongside researchers from the University of Exeter in the United Kingdom, scientists deployed advanced surveying methodologies and demographic modeling to account for tortoises distributed across dense brush and coastal dunes, yielding a robust population baseline.

Environmental authorities and conservation scientists emphasize that the soaring population is not merely a statistical victory for biodiversity, but an ecological necessity. As "mega-herbivores," the tortoises act as primary ecosystem engineers on the islands. Their foraging habits, seed dispersal mechanisms, and landscape-shaping movements maintain the open grassland structures and forest regeneration cycles vital to numerous other endemic flora and fauna species inhabiting the atoll.

While the Aldabra giant tortoise remains classified as Vulnerable by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) due to its concentration in a single primary location susceptible to climate change and sea-level rise, this thriving census reinforces the efficacy of sustained, science-driven public-trust management. The findings highlight how dedicated international academic partnerships and localized institutional stewardship can successfully reverse severe biodiversity loss in fragile island ecosystems.