Gramma the Galapagos tortoise, oldest resident of San Diego Zoo, dies at about 141

www.nbcsandiego.com ^ | November 25, 2025 | Jaimie Ding

[Red Badger]

After more than a century of munching on her favorite foods of romaine lettuce and cactus fruit, beloved Galapagos tortoise Gramma, the oldest resident of the San Diego Zoo, has died.

Gramma was born in her native habitat and was estimated to be about 141 years old, zoo officials said. She died Nov. 20.

It's not clear exactly when the tortoise arrived at the San Diego Zoo, but zoo officials said she came from the Bronx Zoo in either 1928 or 1931 as part of their first group of Galapagos tortoises.

As the world changed around her, she delighted visitors with her sweet, shy personality. She lived through two World Wars and 20 U.S. presidents.

Her care specialists affectionately called her “the Queen of the Zoo." She was suffering from bone conditions related to her old age that progressed recently before she was euthanized, the zoo said.

Many visitors commented on social media about getting to first visit Gramma when they were young, and being able to come back years later with their kids.

Cristina Park, 69, said one of her earliest memories from her childhood was going to the San Diego Zoo when she was 3 or 4 years old and riding on the back of a tortoise. That's no longer allowed, but the experience inspired her to keep a small desert tortoise as a pet and learn more about tortoise conservation.

[Albion Wilde]

Here's Gramma:

[Paperpusher]

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