Whether observing a marine iguana being washed by ocean waves or facing a serene wizened Galápagos Tortoise– any visitor to the Galápagos Islands can not help but ponder, “how did such creatures come into existence?” And they would not be the first.
More than any other place on Earth, the Galápagos Islands are the workshop of evolution. Isolated and desolate, they were largely overlooked by early explorers until Charles Darwin arrived there in the 1830’s. It was Darwin who recognized that Galápagos’ isolation and desolation were advantages: the scarcity of species and lack of outside influences made the workings of natural selection crystal clear. Since then, every important advance and controversy in evolutionary thinking has had its reflection on the Galápagos. In every sense, intellectually, institutionally, and culturally the history of science on these islands is a history of the way evolutionary science has been done for the past 150 years.
“The natural history of this archipelago is very remarkable: it seems to be a little world within itself.” – Charles Darwin, Journal of researches
Charles Darwin’s visit to the Galápagos in 1835 is one of the most famous few weeks in the history of science. Darwin sailed to Galápagos on board the HMS Beagle when he was only 26 years old. During the five weeks that he spent there, he went ashore to collect plants, rocks, insects and birds. He observed the unusual life forms and their adaptations to the harsh environment. With the help of some of the locals, he noted that it was possible to distinguish which island a tortoise came from by the shape of their shell.
His most well-known research is of the numerous species of finches which inspired his groundbreaking theory The Origin of Species, published in 1859.
During his visit to the islands, Darwin noted that the unique creatures were similar from island to island, but perfectly adapted to their environments which led him to ponder the origin of the islands’ inhabitants.
Eventually, after having left the Galápagos, Darwin concluded that one type of finch from South America had arrived on the recently created volcanic islands and, like the tortoises, had adapted to the different opportunities found on each island and had developed based on their environmental conditions.
Basically science on the islands has shown that a species has the ability to adapt not only its habits and preferences but also its physical form in order to ensure its survival.
Visiting the Galápagos brings these concepts into sharp focus. Imagine a type of iguana – a reptile – that when the only way to find it’s food source was to go into the ocean it developed the ability to swim.
And the Cormorant who lives in a remote island location far from any predators whose wings change shape and no longer provide the ability to fly, instead this bird becomes an expert swimmer as well as developing large feet, which allow it to be adept at trudging over the lava shoreline. These animals have adapted to a life that like many other animals revolves around survival, only in this case they have adapted to a world where scarcity of food is more often than not a reality and environmental conditions can mean abundance one year and famine the next. If your food moves or changes then you better adapt and even physically change to make sure you have something to eat.
Darwin would later – when writing On the Origin of Species – draw heavily on the animals he saw in the Galápagos, to advance his radical notion that their creation was not a single event, but a process of change, from one form, into many different ones and science since then has borne out that theory.
“The measure of intelligence is the ability to change.” ― Albert Einstein
The conditions of life on our planet are changing everywhere faster and faster; the pressures of natural selection are increasing in intensity, yearly, daily and even hourly. Whether or not we choose to acknowledge it evolution is shaping us all.
One thing about being a solo traveler is that you have lots of time to think. Even traveling in a group I find that my brain seems to work in overdrive and all this talk about evolution and species adaption got me thinking about how it pertains to humans. Some of these animals have made what I would consider radical changes over a relatively short period of time. So the question is: “how have humans adapted (if they have) in that short period?” I would submit to the reader that instead of adapting to our natural environment we have instead forced changes to the environment to keep from having to adapt. Those changes certainly make our lives easier but can sometimes have very negative consequences on the planet and the other species that we share it with (can you say climate change?).
“Everyone thinks of changing the world, but no one thinks of changing himself.” ― Leo Tolstoy
I will go out on a limb here and say that if we as humans could become more adept at evolving to adapt to our environment and spend less time and effort in changing the environment to fit our lifestyles the world would be a better place for all creatures.
“Yesterday I was clever, so I wanted to change the world. Today I am wise, so I am changing myself.” ― Jalaluddin Rumi
Now back to the Galápagos and those rare and exciting animals that have adapted to life there – here is just a taste of the creatures you can enjoy on these amazing islands……
“A shore fit for Pandemonium” – Robert FitzRoy Captain of the Beagle
The Giant Tortoises are unique to the Galápagos as well as the Marine Iguanas and many of the trees, bushes and cactus. Species after species on the islands bear family resemblance to their relatives on the mainland of South America but they are clearly distinct from anything ever found there. These animals, marooned on these lonely islands have diverged from their original ancestors and keep right on diverging and adapting to their changing circumstances. As these animals have very little if any fear of humans it is possible to observe them up close and personal and get some great photos.
The Galápagos Penguin is one of the smallest penguins in the world and is endemic to the Galápagos Islands (can only be found here). It is the only penguin species found north of the equator, nesting entirely in the tropics, with some colonies living on the northern tip of Isabela in the Northern Hemisphere. Unlike their southern relatives who are burrow-dwelling, Galápagos Penguins instead live in caves and crevices in the coastal lava.
As with all penguin species, they are extremely agile under water, reaching speeds of nearly 25 miles per hour when hunting. Their diet consists primarily of cold-water schooling fish, such as anchovies, sardines and mullet, which are able to live in the Galápagos Marine Reserve thanks to the cold waters of the Humboldt Current.
Galápagos Penguins mate for life, with the female laying between one and two eggs which are incubated for 35-40 days. Penguin breeding success is very closely linked to environmental conditions; therefore climate change is a major threat to their future. In 1982 there was a particularly strong El Niño event that caused 77% of the population to die of starvation and the population has been recovering ever since. The current population is estimated to be just 2,000 birds making them the rarest and most endangered penguin species in the world.
The Galápagos Giant Tortoise can weigh up to 600 pounds with a carapace length of 4 feet and outlive most humans.
The giant tortoise arrived in Galápagos from mainland South America 2-3 million years ago, where they underwent adaptation into at least 14 species, differing in their morphology and distribution. Their population is currently estimated at 20,000 individuals.
The Galápagos Giant Tortoise spends an average of 16 hours per day resting. The rest of their time is spent eating grasses, fruits and cactus pads. They enjoy bathing in water, but can survive for up to a year without water or food. This adaptation was nearly the cause for their extinction, when buccaneers, whalers and fur sealers discovered that they could have fresh meat for their long voyages by storing live giant tortoises in the holds of their ships, massive exploitation of the species began. With the establishment of the Galápagos National Park and the Charles Darwin Foundation in 1959, a systematic review of the status of the tortoise populations began. Only 11 of the 14 originally named populations remained and most of these were endangered if not already on the brink of extinction. The only thing saving several of the populations was the longevity of tortoises, keeping some old adults alive until conservation efforts could save their species.
“Animals, whom we have made our slaves, we do not like to consider our equal.” — Charles Darwin
The Galápagos Hawk is closely related to North America’s red-backed and white-tailed hawks and is endemic to the Galápagos Islands. It is one of the world’s rarest raptors, with an estimated population of just 150 breeding pairs. This juvenile hawk seemed unconcerned with our presence in the area.
The Galápagos Fur Seal are the smallest among the world’s seven species of fur sea lions. They are endemic to the Islands and due to their decreasing population size, they are classed as endangered by the IUCN. They are the smallest in the family of otariids (the eared seals), and have a grayish-brown fur coat. For the lay person it is often times hard to distinguish them from the Galápagos Sea Lion which is more often seen by visitors to the islands.
The Galápagos Marine Iguana is the only marine lizard to exist in the world. Marine iguanas have adapted to everything the islands have thrown at them, in essence this unique species represents what the Galápagos is all about. If you can’t tell, these were my favorite animals on the Islands – what is cooler than an Iguana that has learned to swim?
“Adapt or perish, now as ever, is Nature’s inexcusable imperative.” ― H.G. Wells
One of the many questions that I posed to our capable guide (hopefully I wasn’t one of those problem travelers!) was “What do you call a group of Marine Iguanas?” Not knowing the answer right off the top of his head (who asks these crazy questions?) he came back the next day with an answer….
A Mess of Iguanas – even their group name is awesome!
The Marine Iguana is the only lizard in the world with the ability to live and forage at sea and is endemic to the Galápagos Archipelago. There are six very similar subspecies, each from different islands, that have evolved and changed to fit their specific environments. The adults are black for most of the year, however the males change colour during the mating season turning various shades of bright green and red. The juveniles are generally black, with a lighter dorsal stripe than the adults.
Marine iguanas are not a very agile species on land, but they are excellent swimmers – moving easily through the water as they feed on algae. Our guide shared with the group that these animals can hold their breath underwater for up to 30 minutes and can dive as deep as 30 meters in search of food. Due to the high concentration of salt in their diet, marine iguanas filter their blood at the nose and sneeze out the excess salt, often forming salt crystals on the snout.
Despite not being truly social, iguanas are highly gregarious – especially on cold nights when they tend to group together to conserve heat. In the morning, they bask in the sun, absorbing heat with their black scales until they have enough energy to swim out to sea to forage. Upon entering the water, their heartbeat slows to half its normal pace in order to conserve energy and allow them to feed for as long as possible. Our guide knew the behavior of these animals well and arranged for us to be snorkeling around noon – right when the Iguanas were feeding. That afternoon we hiked through many “messes” of Iguanas basking in the sun and “sneezing” the salt out of their noses. An awesome experience for this Marine Iguana lover!
The Galápagos Flightless Cormorant is an endemic species to Galápagos and is not only the largest cormorant species, but also the only one which cannot fly. As the name suggests, they cannot fly away and are therefore confined to the lava shoreline and beaches of Isabela and Fernandina. The adults are black on top and dark brown underneath with bright turquoise eyes. They have stunted wings that are one third the size of the wingspan they would require to fly.
They have four webbed toes (like all members of the cormorant family) and their underwater abilities make up for their lack of flight. Natural selection led to the species no longer having functional wings as they had very few land predators, and individuals that were better suited to swimming were more successful in passing on their genes.
A perennial visitor favorite, Blue-footed Boobies are large, distinctive birds, found along the Eastern Pacific coastline where they often nest on small islands with rocky coasts. Their name comes from the Spanish word ‘bobo’, meaning foolish or clown – referring to their clumsy movement on land. Their feathers are brown on top, with a white rump and black tail, with white underparts.
The most distinctive characteristic of the blue-footed booby is its large blue feet, which play an important role in courtship. Females are thought to select males with larger and brighter feet, as they are an indicator of his overall condition and thus the quality of his genes. We had the good fortune to watch the Boobies courtship “dance” where the male parades around the proposed nest site, strutting his blue feet for the female and lifting them high into the air while looking down with his beak.
The Galápagos Green Turtle is only commonly seen in a few places in the world, including Galápagos. They are the only species of sea turtle to nest in Galápagos, with some females returning several times to lay their eggs, and are also the most common species sighted.
They are fast swimmers, travelling at speeds up to 35 mph over long distances. They are even able to sleep underwater, but only for a few hours at a time. It was great to watch these animals both from our boat in the mangroves, and up close and personal underwater while snorkeling.
A visit to the Galápagos Islands is filled with animals that have adapted in unique ways over the years to the changing environment around them. This truly creates a different world, unique and special and one like no other you will ever visit.
The ability to adapt to change no matter how challenging the circumstances is one that we can all learn from, it is eccentric specialization at its finest. If we as a species can learn to change and co-exist we will create a better world. Visit the Galápagos – you will not regret it.
“The only way that we can live, is if we grow. The only way that we can grow is if we change. The only way that we can change is if we learn. The only way we can learn is if we are exposed. And the only way that we can become exposed is if we throw ourselves out into the open. Do it. Throw yourself.” ― C. JoyBell C.
Thoroughly enjoy you sharing your experiences with all of us Dana!