Pennsylvania’s Lehigh Valley Zoo Seeks Funds For Aldabra Tortoise Exhibit

The Lehigh Valley Zoo in Schnecksville, PA hopes to build a walk-thru Aldabra tortoise (Geochelone gigantea) exhibit and is soliciting donations to help build it.

According to a news item on the zoo’s website, the zoo needs help in raising the funds to build what it says will be a state-of-the-art Tortoise Hut, complete with a modern climate and humidity controlled building that will give the tortoises multiple locations to bask, bathe and hide. 

“We are aiming to raise $350,000 for this beautiful exhibit and we are extremely confident that construction will begin late summer due to the incredible support of our zoo guests, family and corporate partners,” the zoo wrote on its Facebook page, responding to a question from a patron.

Dispute Over Scientific Name Of Aldabra Tortoise Is Settled: T. Gigantea It Will Remain

Visitors to the zoo will be able to enter the hut during the cold months and even interact with the reptiles during feeding sessions. During the hotter times of the year, visitors will be able to walk a path and watch the tortoises basking in the sun. 

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The giant tortoises can weigh up to 500 pounds, making them one of the biggest tortoises in the world.
 

In addition to the zoo’s donation page, to help offset the construction costs, the zoo is holding an Adopt an Animal fundraiser where, for $45, you can “adopt” a tortoise. You will receive an Aldabra tortoise fact sheet, a photo of your animal, a plush toy animal, and a personalized certificate of adoption. You can adopt an animal here.

The exhibit will be open year round. 

Aldabra tortoises are so named because of where they are found in the wild, the Aldabran Atoll off the coast of the Seychelles. The giant tortoises can weigh up to 500 pounds, making them one of the biggest tortoises in the world. The Galapagos tortoise is bigger. Mostly herbivores, the Aldabra tortoise feeds on grasses, leaves, plants, stems and weeds.