"Pepe the Missionary," a revered giant tortoise frequently photographed on Ecuador's Galapagos Islands, has passed away at the age of 60, announced officials on Friday.
Pepe, who resided in an enclosure at the Galapagos National Park's Interpretation Center, succumbed to natural causes, according to Victor Carrion, the park's ecosystems director.
"Several of his organs had been gradually failing," Carrion informed AFP, noting the tortoise was also overweight.
Park director Arturo Izurieta paid tribute to Pepe on Twitter, saying, "After 60 years of life, Pepe the Missionary will forever remain in our memories."
Izurieta shared a reassuring message for conservationists: "The loss of Pepe the tortoise does not threaten his species."
Pepe belonged to the Chelonoidis becki species, native to Wolf Volcano on Isabela Island, where around 2,000 tortoises of the same species still thrive in their natural habitat.
Pepe was taken from the wild by a family from San Cristobal island in the 1940s. Local fishermen initially named him "Pepe," a name later extended to "Pepe the Missionary" when Franciscan missionaries received him in 1967. He became their cherished mascot and a beloved pet within the community, frequently photographed and fed by visitors to the mission.
In 2012, the missionaries entrusted him to the national park -- the same year that another famous tortoise, Lonesome George, the last known member of the subspecies Geochelone nigra abingdoni, passed away.
The Galapagos Islands are renowned for their unique flora and fauna, famously studied by Charles Darwin during his formulation of the theory of evolution.
