Death hoax about Jonathan, the world’s oldest tortoise, fools BBC

A hoax falsely claiming that Jonathan, the world’s oldest living tortoise, had died spread on X, with BBC News and other outlets briefly reporting the claim as fact before it was debunked.

The fake post, written as if it came from veterinarian Joe Hollins, claimed Jonathan had died peacefully on St. Helena at the age of 193. It described the tortoise as a “gentle giant” and included personal details of caring for Jonathan that were meant to make the post appear authentic.

“This is a hoax,” the real Hollins said in a post from his account. “There is a hoax going around in X… using my name, saying Jonathan the Tortoise, the oldest living land animal, is dead. IT IS NOT TRUE.”

The fake account later posted an “April Fools” message.

BBC News was among the outlets that fell for the hoax, publishing an article which said Jonathan had died attributing the claim to Hollins. The report repeated details from the fake post, including that Hollins had cared for Jonathan for years and had hand-fed him bananas.

Jonathan lives on the South Atlantic island of St. Helena and is widely recognized as the world’s oldest known living land animal. He is believed to have hatched around 1832, meaning he has lived through nearly two centuries of history and become one of the island’s best-known residents.