This is Diego. A very happy 100-year-old tortoise.
Photo by Rodrigo Buenida/AFP/Getty Images.
He's originally from the San Diego Zoo (hence the name) and was brought to the Galapagos Islands in the 1977. He's been living there ever since.
What's he so happy about? Well, how do I put this...
Diego has — almost single-handedly — revived his nearly extinct species in the Galapagos Islands.
Yeah, the old shelled stud has been pretty busy.
"He's a very sexually active male reproducer," said Washington Tapia, a tortoise preservation specialist at Galapagos National Park. "He's contributed enormously to repopulating the island."
Diego taking a well-earned lunch break. Rodrigo Buenida/AFP/Getty Images.
Until very recently, Diego's species was in dire straits. For hundreds of years they were hunted for food by pirates and merchants, and before Diego's arrival in the islands, there were only 14 left.
Diego got to work, and it's estimated that he's fathered about 1,700 children so far.
"We did a genetic study and we discovered that he was the father of nearly 40 percent of the offspring released into the wild on Espanola," said Tapia.
Currently, he lives on Isla Santa Cruz with six females. And he'll likely live there for some time as his species can live well past 100.
Along with Diego's natural ... talents ... the revival of the Galapagos tortoise is thanks to some incredible work by conservationists around the world.
Organizations like the Galapagos Conservancy and the Charles Darwin Foundation have been hard at work for decades surveying, studying, and working to rescue endangered species on the Galapagos Islands.
A zookeeper weighs a Galapagos tortoise in London. Photo by Oli Scarff/Getty Images.
It's an appropriate place to do so, too. After all, the Galapagos Islands are where Charles Darwin first took note of the incredible diversity of Earth's creatures and how their appearances varied based on where they live. That observation would eventually lead to his Theory of Natural Selection — which is one of the founding principles for how we understand life and evolution today.
As far as Diego...
You can call him "sex mad" or a "ladies' man" or even "the most interesting giant tortoise in the world."
I'm going to call him the name he really deserves. Hero.
He's a hero who had the courage, the pluck, the outright valor to do what was right and save his species. Sure it was hard, but did Diego complain? No. Did he crawl back into his shell and cower from the challenge before him? No.
Diego, on the way to save his species. Rodrigo Buenida/AFP/Getty Images.
Diego kept his chin up and walked right into the danger. Slowly. Because he's a tortoise.
Frankly, we should all be a little more like Diego. I mean ... not exactly like Diego. Just, you know, in spirit. The whole "facing challenges" thing.
Way to go, old fella.
There's a reason why some people can perfectly copy accents, and others can't
Turns out, there's a neurodivergent link.
A woman in black long sleeve shirt stands in front of mirror.
Have you ever had that friend who goes on vacation for four days to London and comes back with a full-on Queen's English posh accent? "Oooh I left my brolly in the loo," they say, and you respond, "But you're from Colorado!" Well, there are reasons they (and many of us) do that, and usually it's on a pretty subconscious level.
It's called "accent mirroring," and it's actually quite common with people who are neurodivergent, particularly those with ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder). According Neurolaunch, the self-described "Free Mental Health Library," "Accent mirroring, also known as accent adaptation or phonetic convergence, is the tendency to unconsciously adopt the accent or speech patterns of those around us. This linguistic chameleon effect is not unique to individuals with ADHD, but it appears to be more pronounced and frequent in this population."
Essentially, when people have conversations, we're constantly "scanning" for information—not just the words we're absorbing, but the inflection and tone. "When we hear an accent, our brains automatically analyze and categorize the phonetic features, prosody, and intonation patterns," writes Neurolaunch. For most, this does result in copying the accent of the person with whom we're speaking. But those with ADHD might be more sensitive to auditory cues. This, "coupled with a reduced ability to filter out or inhibit the impulse to mimic…could potentially explain the increased tendency for accent mirroring."
While the article explains further research is needed, they distinctly state that, "Accent mirroring in individuals with ADHD often manifests as an unconscious mimicry of accents in social situations. This can range from subtle shifts in pronunciation to more noticeable changes in intonation and speech rhythm. For example, a person with ADHD might find themselves unconsciously adopting a Southern drawl when conversing with someone from Texas, even if they’ve never lived in the South themselves."
People are having their say online. On the subreddit r/ADHDWomen, a thread began: "Taking on accents is an ADHD thing?" The OP shares, "My whole life, I've picked up accents. I, myself, never noticed, but everyone around me would be like, 'Why are you talking like that??' It could be after I watched a show or movie with an accent or after I've traveled somewhere with a different accent than my 'normal.'
They continue, "Apparently, I pick it up fast, but it fades out slowly. Today... I'm scrolling Instagram, I watch a reel from a comedian couple (Darcy and Jeremy. IYKYK) about how Darcy (ADHD) picks up accents everywhere they go. It's called ADHD Mirroring??? And it's another way of masking."
(The OP is referring to Darcy Michaels and his husband Jeremy Baer, who are both touring comedians based in Canada.)
Hundreds of people on the Reddit thread alone seem to relate. One comments, "Omfg I've done this my whole life; I'll even pick up on the pauses/spaces when I'm talking to someone who is ESL—but English is my first language lol."
Sometimes, it can be a real issue for those around the chameleon. "I accidentally mimicked a waitress's weird laugh one time. As soon as she was out of earshot, my family started to reprimand me, but I was already like 'oh my god I don’t know why I did that, I feel so bad.'"
Many commenters on TikTok were shocked to find out this can be a sign of ADHD. One jokes, "Omg, yes, at a store the cashier was talking to me and she was French. She's like 'Oh are you French too? No, I'm not lol. I'm very east coast Canada."
And some people just embrace it and make it work for them. "I mirror their words or phrase! I’m 30. I realized I start calling everyone sweetie cause my manager does & I work at coffee shop."