A fake social media account posing as the vet of Jonathan, the world’s oldest known land animal, has prompted a wave of false reports that the giant tortoise had died. The 194-year-old Seychelles giant tortoise, who lives on the grounds of the governor’s mansion on Saint Helena, was the subject of a post on X claiming he had passed away peacefully. The account, attributed to “Joe Hollins”, also solicited cryptocurrency donations, describing the claim as “heartbroken” news.
The BBC, Daily Mail and USA Today were among outlets that reported Jonathan’s death before checks by the Guardian revealed the account was based in Brazil. The real Joe Hollins, who does not use X, 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.” The BBC later retracted its report.
Governor Nigel Phillips was preparing for bed on Wednesday when he received an influx of anxious messages. He searched the grounds and found Jonathan asleep under a tree in a paddock, “very much alive”. On Thursday, Phillips joked that Jonathan had issued a press statement: “The report of my death was an exaggeration … Mark Twain, not Oscar Wilde. Jonathan would nonetheless have had the chance to enjoy both their works in the original first editions.”
Despite being blind from cataracts and having lost his sense of smell, Jonathan remains healthy with a strong appetite for bananas and a keen interest in two younger tortoises on the property. To provide proof of life, the governor’s team took a photograph of him on Thursday morning, posing the sleepy tortoise with an iPad displaying the BBC homepage. Phillips attributed Jonathan’s longevity to a simple routine: grazing on grass, a weekly meal of fruit, vegetables and salad, and a fondness for sweet treats.
The hoax has unsettled the community of about 4,440 people, where Jonathan is a local celebrity and appears on the reverse of Saint Helena’s 5p coin. He was given a double helping of bananas to celebrate his resurrection, and was seen enthusiastically eating them from a keeper’s hand. The real Hollins admitted he was momentarily worried, saying: “It makes one slightly nervous considering he’s at least 194.”
