Aldabrachelys

Aldabrachelys
Scientific classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Testudines
Suborder: Cryptodira
Superfamily: Testudinoidea
Family: Testudinidae
Genus: Aldabrachelys
Loveridge & E. Williams, 1957
Species
Synonyms
  • Dipsochelys Bour, 1982

Aldabrachelys is genus of giant tortoises, including the Aldabra giant tortoise (Aldabrachelys gigantea) native to the Seychelles, as well as two extinct species, Aldabrachelys abrupta and Aldabrachelys grandidieri known from Madagascar. The genus name derives from Aldabra, a coral atoll in the Seychelles, plus chelys, from the Greek, χέλυς, for "tortoise" or "lyre", since Hermes was the first to invent the lyre from a hollowed out tortoise shell.