Galapagos giant tortoises Taro and Kamekichi from Ueno Zoo Vivarium, who were moved to the outdoor release area on July 14, 2014, returned indoors on September 8 as nighttime temperatures dropped. Taro is now in the first exhibit area and Kamekichi is in the back yard. Seeing them both back in their familiar places and enjoying their leisurely lives is a relief to those in charge of the exhibit.

However, Kamekichi is a picky eater, and since his appetite has dropped noticeably during the hot summer months, we are currently struggling to improve his diet.

In the wild, Galapagos giant tortoises are almost completely herbivorous, eating grass, cacti, and fruit.

At the zoo, they are fed grass, komatsuna (Japanese mustard spinach), cabbage, as well as fruits and root vegetables as side dishes, but Kamekichi is a picky eater all year round, and it is not unusual for him to eat only fruits on some days, with little or no grass or vegetables. Sometimes, during the hot season, he would not even eat fruit.

Taro also tends to lose his appetite in summer, but once the weather cools down, he returns to normal and eats almost all the food he is given without any preferences.

If Tamekichi continues to eat only a little grass and vegetables that he should be eating, and only sweet fruits, his internal organs will be overloaded, which is not good for his health.

Therefore, we began to feed him a variety of grasses and vegetables on a trial basis so that he would eat well. So far, we have tried molokheiya, celery, aloe, bell peppers, okra, uchiwa cactus, bell peppers, purple cabbage, and others. Some of these have not responded at all and have been left untouched, while others, on the other hand, have almost made the person in charge say, "Okay," with a gut-punch, most notably the purple cabbage. How about purple cabbage, which is different in color from the cabbage we usually feed them? When we gave it to him, he began to devour it as if he were devouring it. We don't know for sure whether the turtles were distinguishing it by its color or by its smell, but it was a big hint for us when we were thinking about our future menu.

Ultimately, our goal is to feed Kamekichi vegetables and green grasses that suit him throughout the four seasons, and to create a menu that does not require constant reliance on high-sugar fruits. However, it will take some time to achieve this goal, as we are carefully considering the menu and trying it out little by little to avoid any negative effects on Kamekichi's health by making drastic changes.

We, the staff members in charge of the project, will continue to make every effort through trial and error so that Kamekichi can stay in good health forever.

Photo: "Kamekichi" biting into a purple cabbage

[Ueno Zoo Mayu Kawasaki, Amphibian Breeding and Exhibiting Section

(September 26, 2014)