ORIGINAL NAME: Testudo elephantina.TYPE SPECIES: Testudo gigantea Schweigger 1812,DISTRIBUTION: Aldabra Island, Seychelles Is.COMMENT: Although the name Geochelone gigantea has often been appliedto the Aldabra tortoises, Bour 1982/1984 show that the description of Testudo gigantea Schweigger 1812, was not based on an Aldabratortoise, and proposed using Testudo elephantina Dumeril and Bibron.Pritchard 1986, demonstrated that Testudo gigantea was based on aspecimen of Geochelone denticulata and proposed retention ofAldabrachelys. Bour 1982 suggested the name Aldabrachelys, which isassociated with the name gigantea, was unavailable and proposed thename Dipsochelys. Meylan and Auffenberg 1987 pointed out thateAldabrachelys is still available since Loveridge and Williams 1957applied Aldabrachelys to tortoises found today on AldabraIsland. Because the Intl. Code Zool. Nomen. has yet to make a ruling,the Aldabra tortoises here remain in Aldabrachelys. For other views onthe correct name of the Aldabra tortoises,see Crumly 1986,Herpetologica 42:237-241, and Hoogmoed and Crumly 1984,Zool. Med. Leiden 58:241-259.This is a edited (severely shortened) version of a paragraph in:King, F. Wayne, and Russell L. Burke (eds.). 1997. Crocodilian,Tuatara, and Turtle Speciesof the World: An Online Taxonomic andGeographic Reference [Online]. Association of Systematics Collections,Washington, D.C. 294 p.