Nature
The Galapagos Islands are one of the most interesting and best studied of the world's archipelagos.
The Galapagos Islands surfaced some five to ten million years ago. At such time no life existed on them. The life of the Galapagos had to arrive transported by vegetation rafts, by the wind or under its own energy.
The difficulties a trip like this entails determines that very few species of animals can withstand this hardship. Hence, flora and fauna in isolated islands such as the Galapagos are consistently less diverse than in islands which were once part of larger landmasses or that are considerably nearer to a continent.
The Galapagos plant and animal life have fascinated scientists and visitors alike for generations. There are few places on Earth where one can find animal and plant species that show so many degrees of evolutionary change in such a restricted area.
Approximately forty percent of Galapagos plants are endemic to the archipelago, and there is evidence that some of these plants continue to evolve into some other species.
The soil in the Galapagos islands is not very developed. This is a trait of young volcanic islands which retards plant development and limits the life-forms that can be supported.
These special conditions and the relative isolation of the Galapagos have prompted the evolution of unique lifeforms that fascinate both scientists and visitors.
Many of the animals in the Galapagos are of species that can withstand the hardship of an accidental journey from the continent. This possibly explains why there are no amphibians in the Galapagos, which are ill equipped to withstand direct sunlight, seawater, etc., and could not likely withstand a trip from the continent on what could be vegetation rafts.
The same applies to mammals, which are almost nonexistent in the Galapagos. In fact, there are only two genuses of endemic terrestrial mammals to be found in the Galapagos: two bat species and several rat species.
This also might explain why the predominant form of animal life in the Galapagos is reptiles, which are better equipped to endure extreme conditions.
Perhaps the biggest draw to the Galapagos Islands is their distinctive, fearless wildlife. As the animals do not seek to flee and carry on going about their business as normal even in the close presence of humans, it is possible at times to see spectacular displays. This allows for a deeply stirring experience that is hard to surpass.
More so, considering that many of Galapagos' animals are endemic to the Islands, existing nowhere else. It was their peculiar traits that inspired Darwin to issue his momentous book "The Origin of the Species"
The Galapagos have one of the highest levels of animal endemism on the planet, and it is this and other exemplary circumstances that have led to the Galapagos being recognized as a living laboratory for the study of evolution.
The Galapagos Islands are home to almost all the species (95%) that once lived there before humans arrived. In comparison, Hawaii is believed to have lost 50% of its original animal and plant species
Lonesome George is an icon, at the same time both dramatically tragic but also full of hope, for the Galapagos Islands. He’s the only surviving specimen of a species that was once common to Pinta Island. Scientists have tried for several years, unsuccessfully, to get Lonesome George to mate with females of a closely related tortoise species in order to save the species from extinction with his demise.
One of the most distinctive elements of Galapagos is the abundance of birdlife. Frigate birds, boobies, tropicbirds, pelicans, shearwaters, petrels and noddies can often be seen. For example, almost all breeding pairs of waved albatross in the world breed only in one tiny Galapagos Island, Hood.
One of the Galapagos' many curiosities is its penguins. The Galapagos harbours the only colony of penguins in the tropics.
There are also flightless cormorants, which are unique to the Galapagos. Likely having arrived to the islands millions of years ago and evolved into this distinct species. This is one of the multiple examples one will find in the Galapagos showing the workings of evolution.
The Galapagos also have notable colonies of sea lions. Some research suggests that the Galapagos Sea Lion may be an endemic species.
Sally Lightfoot Crabs are a sight to reckon with, with their bright orange colour and their numbers in the hundreds, they pepper the stark volcanic rocks of the Galapagos.
One of the Galapagos’ most prominent inhabitants is the marine iguana, the only seagoing lizard in the world. With its antediluvian presence, they make for spectacular picture-opportunities. It’s easy to find colonies of marine iguanas numbering in the hundreds basking in the sun on the shores of the Galapagos. They dive by mid-day and feed on algae, staying for as much as 30 minutes underwater on each dive.
The waters of the Galapagos harbour an extraordinary concentration of life. The presence of both the Humboldt and the El Niño current provide for this phenomenal circumstance.
Galapagos waters have been deemed to have one of the largest concentration of pelagic fish in the world. The lush richness of its underground environment has made the Galapagos to be ranked as the number one dive destination in the world for many years now.
Whale sharks, dolphins, manta-rays, Orcas, sperm whales, hammerhead sharks and many others are regulars of the Galapagos.