By the end of the 90s, the CDF-based program of reproduction of Galapagos’ giant tortoises and repatriation of juveniles to their original islands was fully working, in close cooperation with the Galapagos National Park Service, and with the participation of some of the best international specialists in the species.

One important event in that process was the repatriation of the young tortoise #1000 to Española Island. The act took the form of a real celebration and was fully documented by photographer Tui de Roy in a series of slides currently kept at the audiovisual collection of the CDF’s Archive.

In the images, the small tortoise can be seen, particularly in the hands of Fausto Llerena Sánchez, a National Park guard (the oldest in Ecuador) who strongly collaborated with the CDRS, and one of the main supporters of the rearing program. In fact, the tortoise reproduction center at Santa Cruz is currently named after him.