Why do tortoises have long life spans? - Q and A - Tortoises are able to protect themselves from the long-term effects of cell damage...

Q: Why do tortoises have long life spans?

A: According to Live Science's report, giant tortoises and a few other turtle species seem to be able to protect themselves from the long-term effects of cell damage.

They do this by quickly killing off damaged cells, using a process called apoptosis, or programmed cell death...
Source: livescience.com..