Playboy Tortoise Retires

That’s pretty much how most reports have headlined the news of a tortoise breeding program coming to an end.  The original press release is simply titled: ‘Española tortoise captive breeding program concludes’.  Moreover, it is only in the final para of that press release that the specific tortoise in the title gets a brief, and much more dignified mention:

In this group there is also the famous Diego, the male who lived 30 years in the San Diego Zoo, United States, before being recruited to contribute to the captive breeding program. Diego, who is over one hundred years old, will return to his home island almost 8 decades after being extracted. In recent years it has become a symbol of the Galapagos conservation, since it is estimated that approximately 40% of the tortoises repatriated to the island of Española are their descendants.

In contrast, in almost every news report, this para was picked as the lead, and spiced up. 

This is how CNN lead the story:

A womanizing tortoise whose rampant sex life may have single-handedly saved his entire species from extinction has retired from his playboy lifestyle, returning to the wild with his mission accomplished.

Diego's unstoppable libido was credited as a major reason for the survival of his fellow giant tortoises on Espanola, part of the Galapagos Islands, after being shipped over from the San Diego Zoo as part of a breeding program.

And this is how Forbes lead the story:

The sexually rampant and undeniably proud dad, Diego, is a legend when it comes to giant tortoises. He and his shy friend are responsible for the entire population rebound of giant tortoises on Española.

Now, Diego, who is believed to be 100 years old, is retiring from his decades-long job and returning to the wild in Española, part of the Galapagos Islands.