DENVER (KDVR) — An egg that was found in a tortoise habitat at the Denver Zoo Conservation Alliance over the winter has successfully hatched a tiny, but largely important, baby tortoise.
Tuesday, the zoo announced that a female African pancake tortoise hatched at DZCA, marking the zoo’s first-ever successful breeding and hatching of the Critically Endangered species.
“She might be tiny for now, but her role in conservation is huge, the zoo wrote in a post on Facebook.
The zoo said its Animal Ambassador team “found a perfect little egg” in December and carefully took it to Tropical Discovery. Animal care specialists incubated it for six months before it hatched on May 23.
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A female African pancake tortoise hatched at the Denver Zoo Conservation Alliance on May 23, 2025, marking the zoo’s first-ever successful breeding and hatching of the Critically Endangered species. -
A female African pancake tortoise hatched at the Denver Zoo Conservation Alliance on May 23, 2025, marking the zoo’s first-ever successful breeding and hatching of the Critically Endangered species. -
A female African pancake tortoise hatched at the Denver Zoo Conservation Alliance on May 23, 2025, marking the zoo’s first-ever successful breeding and hatching of the Critically Endangered species.
The new arrival joins four others at DZCA, including her mom, Waffles and three males, Short-Stack, Denny and Flapjack.
The zoo said the pancake tortoises live behind the scenes, but guests can see them at Ambassador Carts throughout the summer.
