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(CNN) - A woman-like turtle whose unbridled sex life may have saved her entire species from extinction, has withdrawn from her playboy lifestyle, returning to nature with her mission accomplished.
Diego's unstoppable libido was credited as an important reason for the survival of giant tortoises in Española, part of the Galapagos Islands, after being sent from the San Diego Zoo as part of a breeding program.
When his promiscuity campaign began, there were only two males and 12 females of his species alive on the island.
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But the desirable inhabitant with a shell had so much sex that it helped increase the population to more than 2,000. The Galapagos National Parks service believes that the 100-year-old turtle is the patriarch of about 40% of that population.
"It has contributed a large percentage to the lineage that we are returning to Española," Jorge Carrión, director of the park, told AFP. "There is a feeling of happiness to have the possibility of returning that turtle to its natural state."
A total of 15 turtles participated in the breeding program to increase the population of the island, but none played an important role as Diego.
"Some 1,800 turtles have been returned to Española and now with natural reproduction we have approximately 2,000 turtles," Carrión told AFP.
"This shows that they can grow, they can reproduce, they can develop," he said.
The Galapagos Islands are one of the world's leading destinations for wildlife observation, and were visited by Charles Darwin while working on evolutionary theory.
Galapagos IslandsTortugas
