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A 90-year-old tortoise named Mr. Pickles just became a father of 3. It's a big 'dill'

The three tortoise babies — Dill, Gherkin, and Jalapeño — are the first offspring of their 90-year-old father, Mr. Pickles.
Jackelin Reyna
/
Houston Zoo
The three tortoise babies — Dill, Gherkin, and Jalapeño — are the first offspring of their 90-year-old father, Mr. Pickles.

Nobody ever said turtles worked quickly.

Though it took him nearly a century, the 90-year-old radiated tortoise known as Mr. Pickles is finally a dad.

The Houston Zoo announced on Thursday that he and his partner, 53-year-old Mrs. Pickles, recently welcomed three tortoise hatchlings: Dill, Gherkin and Jalapeño.

The births are a "big dill," says the zoo, because the radiated tortoise, native to Madagascar, is a critically endangered species whose numbers are in decline.

Radiated tortoises produce few offspring, according to zoo officials, and the species suffers from over-collection for illegal sales on the black market. Captive breeding programs have produced new radiated tortoises, but experts say the reptiles may go extinct in the wild.

First-time father Mr. Pickles is considered the most genetically valuable radiated tortoise in the Association of Zoos and Aquariums' Species Survival Plan.

One of the Pickles babies is held after being hatched at the Houston Zoo.
Jackelin Reyna / Houston Zoo
/
Houston Zoo
One of the Pickles babies is held after being hatched at the Houston Zoo.

Mr. and Mrs. Pickles have been an item since her arrival to the zoo in 1996.

It was only by chance that a herpetology keeper at the zoo saw Mrs. Pickles laying her eggs one recent day at closing time.

The zoo's animal care team uncovered the eggs and moved them to the Reptile & Amphibian House. Officials said otherwise the eggs likely wouldn't have hatched on their own, because Houston's soil isn't hospitable to Madagascar native tortoises.

Dill, Gherkin and Jalapeño are now living in the Reptile & Amphibian House until they grow big enough to join their parents.

The trio can be told apart by their shells, the zoo said: Jalapeño has the darkest shell, Dill's shell is lighter and Gherkin's lighter shell has a white dot in the center.

Copyright 2023 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

Joe Hernandez
[Copyright 2024 NPR]

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SOMOS CONNECTICUT es una iniciativa de Connecticut Public, la emisora local de NPR y PBS del estado, que busca elevar nuestras historias latinas y expandir programación que alza y informa nuestras comunidades latinas locales. Visita CTPublic.org/latino para más reportajes y recursos. Para noticias, suscríbase a nuestro boletín informativo en ctpublic.org/newsletters.

The independent journalism and non-commercial programming you rely on every day is in danger.

If you’re reading this, you believe in trusted journalism and in learning without paywalls. You value access to educational content kids love and enriching cultural programming.

Now all of that is at risk.

Federal funding for public media is under threat and if it goes, the impact to our communities will be devastating.

Together, we can defend it. It’s time to protect what matters.

Your voice has protected public media before. Now, it’s needed again. Learn how you can protect the news and programming you depend on.

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