Overview
- Guinness World Records formally named Jonathan a GWR ICON on June 17, reaffirming his status as the world’s oldest known living land animal at an estimated 194 years old.
- Caretakers report age‑related sensory decline, including poor eyesight and loss of smell, but say Jonathan still eats, basks and mates and remains under regular veterinary care at Plantation House on St Helena.
- Researchers have begun DNA and cellular analyses of Jonathan to look for biological traits linked to long life, such as enhanced DNA repair, immune function and slow metabolism.
- St Helena officials and tourism leaders say the ICON award will bring global attention to the island and to Jonathan’s role as a cultural emblem that draws visitors to the governor’s residence paddock.
- Jonathan belongs to a long‑lived Seychelles giant tortoise lineage whose biology shows ‘negligible senescence,’ and scientists hope studying him may offer concrete clues about healthy ageing in other species.