Galapagos, the Enchanted Islands

The Galapagos Islands, lying over 600 miles off the coast of Ecuador, are a volcano-produced equatorial archipelago which has inspired awe in the modern traveler and despair in the ancient one.   Fresh water is very scarce and non-existent on many isles; mammals, until recent times, were almost as scarce--restricted to about seven varieties of small rats, and in the waters, dolphins and whales.  Dependent on ocean currents, storms and tides to bring life, land life is largely restricted to birds, reptiles, insects, and a limited range of plant life. 

Left to their own devices over a relatively brief history, the flora and fauna of each of the eleven main isles and some of their islets developed highly differentiated types of the same parent species that fit the niches they found in their different environments.  It is to this very special archipelago that Darwin sailed in 1835, acting as unofficial naturalist aboard Capt. Fitzroy's ship, the Beagle, which explored and mapped on this voyage many islands and waters for the British navy.   It was Darwin's observations on the Enchanted Isles that caused him over the course of many years to think of and publish his theory of the origin of the species, which has come down to us as the great theory of evolution.

Vermillion flycatcher on Galapagos tortoise.

The Islands, which now form a very large National Park owned by Ecuador, provide an exotic and unforgettable location for scientific research, or for the vacation of a lifetime.  One must enjoy sailing, but that said, swimming with playful sea lions, snorkeling amongst colorful fish, and observing the swift perpendicular dive of the blue-footed booby  straight down into the sea faster than very fast cameras can film, are not burdensome enterprises.  The islands' ecosystem is fragile, and care must be taken to preserve this paradise, but go.  Where else can you go where the birds and the animals are not afraid of human approach?  Where else can you have a mockingbird perch on your hat, or see the comical mating dance of the blue-footed boobies, lifting their bright blue feet from side to side, bringing back their wings as if at a hoe down?   How else can you visit Eden?

Sea iguana

Links

Galapagos.org - Official site of Darwin Foundation

Galapagos Geology on the Web - Cornell University

Charles Darwin and the Galapagos - a short version, complete on one page, with a follow-up on his famous finches in the next two links

Voyage of the Beagle, Chapter 17, "Galapagos Archipelago"

December, 2007