World’s oldest tortoise falls victim to cruel death hoax
His life spanned eight monarchs, two world wars and the invention of the lightbulb, train and telephone.
This is the start of an obituary we were about to write for the world’s oldest tortoise – until it turned out he hadn’t died.
At 193 years old, Jonathan was the victim of an April Fool’s crypto scam which tricked the entire world into believing he had passed away.
The BBC, Daily Mail and USA Today all fell for a fake X account posing as the tortoise’s vet.
The post, attributed to ‘Joe Hollins’, claimed: ‘Heartbroken to share that our beloved Jonathan, the world’s oldest living land animal, has passed away today peacefully on Saint Helena.
‘As his vet for many years, it was an honour to care for him – hand-feeding bananas, watching him bask in the sun and marvelling at his quiet wisdom. He leaves behind a legacy of resilience and longevity that inspired millions. Rest easy, old friend. You’ll be missed more than words can say.’
The X post racked up 2million views and spawned news reports across the globe, until a close look revealed the account behind it was based in Brazil, according to the Guardian.
The real Joe Hollins, who does not use X, then said: ‘Jonathan the tortoise is very much alive.
‘I believe on X the person purporting to be me is asking for crypto donations, so it’s not even an April fool joke. It’s a con.’
Indeed the imposter vet was asking for cryptocurrency donations
A spokesperson for the Friends of the British Overseas Territories also said they had been told that Jonathan was ‘alive and well’.
The historic tortoise’s exact age is actually just an estimate.
No one knows exactly when he was born, but a photograph taken in 1882 shows that he was fully grown when he was first brought to the island of StHelena, a remote outpost in the South Atlantic.
Experts say this suggests he was about 50 years old at the time.
What world events has Jonathan lived through
When Jonathan was born an estimated 193 years ago, Queen Victoria had not yet ascended to the throne and scientists had no idea evolution even existed.
If he was born in 1833, that means he entered the world on the same year the British Empire abolished slavery.
Queen Victoria’s reign began four years later in 1837.
Jonathan survived a huge number of world conflicts, from the Crimean and American Civil wars in the 1800s, to the two World Wars in the 20th century.
The tortoise was well over a 100 years old when the United Nations was founded in 1945 and the first men landed on the moon in 1969.
Jonathan also lived through the invention of the modern world.
The light bulb and the telephone first popped up almost 50 years after he was born.
The concept of the modern computer was proposed by Alan Turing after Jonathan had celebrated his 100th birthday.
The tortoise has met an endless list of famous faces.
He welcome the future Queen Elizabeth II, as well as King George VI and the Queen Mother, to St Helena in 1947.
Jonathan was fed by Prince Philip, the late Duke of Edinburgh, when he was already 125.
House of Commons Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle presented him with a Guinness World Record certificate recognising him as the oldest known land animal in the world.
Jonathan has remained on the British Overseas Territory ever since, where he lives on the grounds of Plantation House, the official residence of the St Helena’s Governor.
This isn’t to say that 193 years doesn’t take its toll on a tortoise.
The animal is blind from cataracts and has lost his sense of smell.
But he continues to have a strong appetite for bananas and a healthy libido – which he tries on with two younger tortoises on the island.
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