美国国家公共电台 NPR--Jonathan, the world's oldest tortoise, marks his 190th with fanfare and salad cake

Jonathan, the world's oldest tortoise, marks his 190th with fanfare¹ and salad cake

Transcript²

He's lived through two world wars, eight British monarchs³ and 40 U.S. presidents. His lifetime has seen the first phone call (1876), the first skyscraper⁴ (1885), the first power-driven flight (1903), the first people to walk on the moon (1969).

He was alive when the first photograph of a person was taken (1838); now he poses for selfies with adoring tourists. He was born before the creation of the postage stamp (1840), and now appears on them.

He is Jonathan, the world's oldest tortoise. And he's celebrating his 190th birthday.

Jonathan marked the occasion with a three-day birthday party over the weekend at his home on the South Atlantic island and British overseas territory St. Helena, where he's spent the majority of his long life (minus the first 50 years or so).

Jonathan is believed to have been born in 1832, but could potentially be even older. His estimated age is based on the fact that he was fully⁵ mature when he was brought to St. Helena from the Seychelles in 1882 as a gift to its then-governor.

And an old photograph of a fully grown Jonathan grazing on grass at the governors' residence — called Plantation⁶ House — sometime between 1882 and 1886 further supports that theory, according to Guinness World Records. He's lived there ever since, and currently enjoys the company of three giant tortoises named David, Emma and Fred.

Guinness World Records declared Jonathan the world's oldest chelonian — a category encompassing⁷ tortoises, turtles and terrapins⁸ — in January, three years after naming him the oldest-known land animal alive.

Jonathan is blind and has no sense of smell, but his hearing is great and he loves the company of humans, St. Helena's government told the recordkeeper at the start of 2022.

Jonathan's favorite foods include cabbage, cucumbers, carrots, apples, bananas and lettuce⁹ hearts. His vet¹⁰, Joe Hollins, described his primary interests as sleeping (either in the sun or beneath grass clippings, depending on the temperature), eating and mating.

"In spite of his age, Jonathan still has good libido¹¹ and is seen frequently to mate with Emma and sometimes Fred — animals are often not particularly gender-sensitive!" Hollins said.

Jonathan has actually been hailed as a gay icon¹² for some time. In 2017, caretakers discovered during a medical procedure that Frederica, his mate of nearly three decades, was not actually a female as had been thought since the two were first introduced in 1991 — which explains the name Fred, and their lack of offspring.

It's just one interesting facet¹³ of Jonathan's fascinating life (another one is that he had his first bath several years ago, at the ripe age of 184), which has far exceeded the typical expectancy¹⁴ of what Hollins says is 150 years.

"Although aware of the responsibility and that, of course, he will die one day, I believe we have greatly enhanced his life expectancy," he told Guiness in 2019. "Like any celebrity¹⁵ we have made advance plans for his demise¹⁶, but hope not to put them into action yet."

Jonathan's birthday party caps off a celebratory year

While Jonathan's exact date of birth is unknown, Governor Nigel Phillips granted him an official birthday of Dec. 4, 1832, earlier this year and timed the big bash so it would coincide with the popular annual Christmas market at Plantation House.

People could visit a special Jonathan stall at the market to see an animated¹⁷ video of his life, view the winners of an art competition in his honor and buy Jonathan-themed stamps and souvenirs, among other perks¹⁸.

And the birthday boy was treated to a special salad cake featuring some of his favorite foods, like tomatoes and bananas.

This weekend's festivities weren't the only chance for fans to wish Jonathan well. St. Helena has actually been celebrating (some might say shell-ebrating) his birthday all year.

It's held local art and souvenir competitions; sold limited-edition portraits, prints and postage stamps; given out certificates to his visitors bearing the first-ever image of his footprint and created crowdsourced photo and video montages celebrating Jonathan's life — including "everything he has lived through, the people who have connected with him and DNA¹⁹ research that could change our understanding of the aging process and of cancer." He is also depicted²¹ on the reverse of the island's 5-pence coin.

St. Helena's tourism website says it's also applying for a national holiday in Jonathan's honor.

It's an honor befitting the local celebrity and tourist attraction, who has met many high-profile visitors over the years, including the late Queen Elizabeth when she was still a princess in 1947.

Visitors today can still see Jonathan roaming the grounds at Plantation House, though it did implement²² some restrictions²³ after what Hollins called "mobbing and inappropriate behavior by cruise-ship tours."

Teeny Lucy, another of Jonathan's caretakers, told the Canadian Broadcasting Corp. that there is a strict policy of not doing anything to cause him undue²⁴ stress — so no more children of visiting dignitaries standing²⁰ on his shell for photos, for example.

"Tortoises, they don't move fast, and they contemplate²⁵ everything. When I go up, it definitely reduces the anxiety that you might be feeling, and it's a slower pace of everything," she said. "He's a charming old gentleman. He really is."

1 fanfare   

n.喇叭；号角之声；v.热闹地宣布

参考例句：

• The product was launched amid much fanfare worldwide.这个产品在世界各地隆重推出。
• A fanfare of trumpets heralded the arrival of the King.嘹亮的小号声宣告了国王驾到。

2 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

3 monarchs   

君主，帝王( monarch的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Monarchs ruled England for centuries. 世袭君主统治英格兰有许多世纪。
• Serving six monarchs of his native Great Britain, he has served all men's freedom and dignity. 他在大不列颠本国为六位君王服务，也为全人类的自由和尊严服务。 来自演讲部分

4 skyscraper   

n.摩天大楼

参考例句：

• The skyscraper towers into the clouds.那幢摩天大楼高耸入云。
• The skyscraper was wrapped in fog.摩天楼为雾所笼罩。

5 fully   

adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地

参考例句：

• The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。
• They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。

6 plantation   

n.种植园，大农场

参考例句：

• His father-in-law is a plantation manager.他岳父是个种植园经营者。
• The plantation owner has possessed himself of a vast piece of land.这个种植园主把大片土地占为己有。

7 encompassing   

v.围绕( encompass的现在分词 )；包围；包含；包括

参考例句：

• Being too large and all-encompassing is a common defect among state-owned enterprises. 过分追求大而全，是国企的一大通病。 来自互联网
• Our services are: all-encompassing, love justice and high quality. 我们的服务目标是：全方位、真情义、高质量。 来自互联网

8 terrapins   

n.（北美的）淡水龟( terrapin的名词复数 )

参考例句：

9 lettuce   

n.莴苣；生菜

参考例句：

• Get some lettuce and tomatoes so I can make a salad.买些莴苣和西红柿，我好做色拉。
• The lettuce is crisp and cold.莴苣松脆爽口。

10 vet   

n.兽医，退役军人；vt.检查

参考例句：

• I took my dog to the vet.我把狗带到兽医诊所看病。
• Someone should vet this report before it goes out.这篇报道发表之前应该有人对它进行详查。

11 libido   

n.本能的冲动

参考例句：

• Lack of sleep is a major factor in loss of libido.睡眠不足是导致性欲丧失的一个主要因素。
• Ginseng can increase energy and libido,which can help solve intimacy problems.人参可以增加活力和性欲，从而帮助解决亲密关系的问题。

12 icon   

n.偶像，崇拜的对象，画像

参考例句：

• They found an icon in the monastery.他们在修道院中发现了一个圣像。
• Click on this icon to align or justify text.点击这个图标使文本排齐。

13 facet   

n.(问题等的)一个方面；(多面体的)面

参考例句：

• He has perfected himself in every facet of his job.他已使自己对工作的各个方面都得心应手。
• Every facet of college life is fascinating.大学生活的每个方面都令人兴奋。

14 expectancy   

n.期望，预期，（根据概率统计求得）预期数额

参考例句：

• Japanese people have a very high life expectancy.日本人的平均寿命非常长。
• The atomosphere of tense expectancy sobered everyone.这种期望的紧张气氛使每个人变得严肃起来。

15 celebrity   

n.名人，名流；著名，名声，名望

参考例句：

• Tom found himself something of a celebrity. 汤姆意识到自己已小有名气了。
• He haunted famous men, hoping to get celebrity for himself. 他常和名人在一起, 希望借此使自己获得名气。

16 demise   

n.死亡；v.让渡，遗赠，转让

参考例句：

• He praised the union's aims but predicted its early demise.他赞扬协会的目标，但预期这一协会很快会消亡。
• The war brought about the industry's sudden demise.战争道致这个行业就这么突然垮了。

17 animated   

adj.生气勃勃的，活跃的，愉快的

参考例句：

• His observations gave rise to an animated and lively discussion.他的言论引起了一场气氛热烈而活跃的讨论。
• We had an animated discussion over current events last evening.昨天晚上我们热烈地讨论时事。

18 perks   

额外津贴，附带福利，外快( perk的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Perks offered by the firm include a car and free health insurance. 公司给予的额外待遇包括一辆汽车和免费健康保险。
• Are there any perks that go with your job? 你的工作有什么津贴吗？

19 DNA   

(缩)deoxyribonucleic acid 脱氧核糖核酸

参考例句：

• DNA is stored in the nucleus of a cell.脱氧核糖核酸储存于细胞的细胞核里。
• Gene mutations are alterations in the DNA code.基因突变是指DNA密码的改变。

20 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

21 depicted   

描绘，描画( depict的过去式和过去分词 )； 描述

参考例句：

• Other animals were depicted on the periphery of the group. 其他动物在群像的外围加以修饰。
• They depicted the thrilling situation to us in great detail. 他们向我们详细地描述了那激动人心的场面。

22 implement   

n.(pl.)工具，器具；vt.实行，实施，执行

参考例句：

• Don't undertake a project unless you can implement it.不要承担一项计划，除非你能完成这项计划。
• The best implement for digging a garden is a spade.在花园里挖土的最好工具是铁锹。

23 restrictions   

约束( restriction的名词复数 )； 管制； 制约因素； 带限制性的条件（或规则）

参考例句：

• I found the restrictions irksome. 我对那些限制感到很烦。
• a snaggle of restrictions 杂乱无章的种种限制

24 undue   

adj.过分的；不适当的；未到期的

参考例句：

• Don't treat the matter with undue haste.不要过急地处理此事。
• It would be wise not to give undue importance to his criticisms.最好不要过分看重他的批评。

25 contemplate   

vt.盘算，计议；周密考虑；注视，凝视

参考例句：

• The possibility of war is too horrifying to contemplate.战争的可能性太可怕了，真不堪细想。
• The consequences would be too ghastly to contemplate.后果不堪设想。