Galapagos Islands
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2022-08-17 11:08:40
Galapagos Islands
These Ecuadorian islands were the inspiration for Charles Darwin's theory of evolution and are considered one of the best landscapes in the world for wildlife viewing. The three main islands—Santa Cruz, San Cristobal and Isabela—offer budgets for luxury accommodation, often combined with private yachts to allow island hopping. Most tours include meals, a naturalist guide, and opportunities for kayaking and snorkeling，sports fitness .
Introduction Edit Broadcast
The Colon Islands are located on the equator in the eastern Pacific Ocean. It consists of 7 large islands and more than 100 small islands, covering an area of about 7,500 square kilometers. It is a province of the Republic of Ecuador, 1000 km from the mainland of Ecuador. It is between 1°40'N~1°25'S and 89°14'~92°01'W.
The Colon Islands is a volcanic island with many high mountains and mountains, and many places are rugged. Therefore, when the island was first discovered, it was called "Scantadas Island" (Spanish means "Devil's Island"). Because of the large number of tortoises on the island, it was later called the "Galapagos Islands" (meaning "Island of Giant Turtles"). After Ecuador ruled these islands, they were renamed the "Cologne Islands". Affected by the Peruvian cold current, although it is located on the equator, the climate is cool and dry, the vegetation is lush, and the surrounding area is blocked by the ocean. Over the years, this archipelago has formed a unique ecological environment. According to experts' investigation, there are more than 700 kinds of ground animals, more than 80 kinds of birds and many insects living on this archipelago, among which giant tortoises and large lizards are world-famous. Sea lions, seals, penguins and other frigid animals often appear on the seaside here. Therefore, the Colon Islands is known as "the world's largest natural museum".
Due to the rare and rare animals living on the island, in 1836, Darwin, a great British scientist, visited the island during his voyage around the world. He believes that the special environment and food have changed the appearance of the animals here. A bronze bust of Darwin is erected on the island of San Cristobal. In 1978, the Colon Islands were declared a "Natural Property of Humanity" by UNESCO.
The Colon Islands is a rare place in the world where exotic flowers and plants gather, and where rare birds and animals gather. Rich in large turtles and large lizards. The Colon Islands is one of the world's "human cultural and natural heritage" protected areas. On this island, there are penguins, albatrosses, seals and other animals. This spectacle was formed because the Peruvian cold current passed by and was immersed in the cold current.
The Galapagos archipelago consists of 19 volcanic islands, extending from the South American continent into the Pacific Ocean, about 1,000 kilometers, and is called "a unique living museum and showroom of biological evolution". Some unusual animal species exist. Examples include land iguanas, giant tortoises and many types of finches. After Charles Darwin visited the island in 1835, he learned from it and laid the foundation for the formation of the theory of evolution.
The Galapagos Islands are about 300 kilometers from east to west, about 200 kilometers from north to south (another information: extending 300 kilometers from north to south), and about 1,000 kilometers from the South American mainland (it takes about 1 hour and 30 minutes by plane from Quito, the capital of Ecuador) . It is a group of oceanic islands formed by lava deposits rising from the seafloor. The largest island in the archipelago is Isabela Island with an area of 4,588 square kilometers. In addition, there are more than 60 islands in size such as St. Rus Island and San Joaquin Island (another information: The Galapagos Islands are composed of 15 large islands, 42 small islands and 26 reefs). The total area of the archipelago is 8,000 square kilometers (another data: 7,800 square kilometers). 96.6% of the area is now a national park, surrounded by a marine reserve with an area of 79.9 square kilometers.
The name of the archipelago, Galapagos, comes from the Spanish word for "big turtle". Being far away from the mainland, the animals here evolved with their own inherent characteristics.
These archipelagos stand alone in the Pacific Ocean, and the islands have almost no freshwater resources other than rain. It turned out to be some deserted islands. In 1535, when a Panamanian ship was veered off course by strong currents, the Panamanian bishop Belanga stumbled upon the archipelago, which he named Las Encantazhens, meaning "bewitched". The island was uninhabited at the time. Fragments of Inca pottery have been found on some islands, proving that the islands were occupied before the Spanish. (There is also information that: in 1535, the Spaniards came here and found that the island was inhabited by a large number of giant tortoises that are rare in the world, and named it "Galapagos Island", which means "Turtle Island".)
The first British nautical map of the Galapagos Islands in 1685. In the late 17th century, some pirates used these islands as hiding places. In 1832, the Republic of Ecuador, just two years after its founding, officially occupied the archipelago. The archipelago was later established as the province of Galapagos, and the provincial capital was Porto Black Bacrizo (on San Cristobal Island).
In 1835, 26-year-old Charles Darwin came here with a British naval survey ship named "Beagle". He spent more than a month on the island collecting specimens, the differences and specificities of some species on the island. Imagination aroused his intense interest and puzzled him. This provided the impetus and confidence for his 1859 book, The Origin of Species by Natural Selection, which made the Galapagos a must-visit "mecca" for biologists and hobbyists alike, and it's worth pointing out The thing is, Darwin did not use the natural phenomena on the Galapagos Islands to prove his theory of evolution. His investigation and experience on the Galapagos Islands when he was young only gave him the confidence to explain this theory. . Later, a bronze bust monument was built on the island of San Cristobal (San Cristobal) in the archipelago. People named the island where he studied birds in honor of him. "Darwin Island".
The Galapagos Islands were formed by volcanic eruptions. There are tall volcanoes standing on the island. The highest is on Isabela Island (Isabel), the largest in the archipelago, named Wolf Volcano (1707). m), the second highest is an extinct volcano, also on the island, called Mount Assur (1689 m). The natural lakes formed by some craters are like jasper embedded in the peak of the volcano, sparkling and shining. The rugged surface is littered with dark red volcanic eruptions. Although this archipelago is not far from the equator, due to the influence of the Peruvian cold current, it is not suitable for the growth of tropical rain forests with high temperature and rain all year round and lush vegetation. Only some cacti and shrubs are distributed in its coastal areas; tall trees grow in higher The hillside is covered with ferns under the trees. Affected by the Peruvian cold current, although it is located near the equator, it is not hot and rainy all year round. Such an environment is suitable for the coexistence of tropical and boreal animals. You can see many types of animals here: sea lions, seals, sea otters, pelicans, albatrosses, penguins, mockingbirds, flamingos and more.
Undoubtedly, Darwin was inspired by the flocks of finches in the Galapagos. All of these birds are descendants of ancient strains that flew here by chance from South America. They found many vacant habitats throughout the island and evolved into 13 species that varied in size, beak shape, feather color, voice, diet and behavior. The differences in the beaks of different species of birds are the best evidence of this adaptive transmission. Some birds have a typical seed-eating beak, others that eat cactus plants have a long, pointed beak, and some that eat insects have a small, papillary beak. Not only do woodpeckers have a specialized beak, but they also develop a complex behavioral pattern that involves using cactus spines to catch larvae in cracks.
The most famous animals are giant sea turtles (also known as "tortoises"), which number in the thousands and are more than 1 meter in length. The longest can be up to 400 years. The giant tortoises here, even of the same species, have different carapace shapes depending on the island they live on.
It has also attracted worldwide attention because of the well-known prehistoric reptile iguanas (also known as "marine iguanas"). These iguanas can dive into the sea to catch food, while females must travel long distances to the crater to lay their eggs. This iguana feeds only on seagrass, and 7 different marine iguanas, each showing distinct differences, have evolved on different islands. All six islands have a terrestrial iguana endemic to the Galapagos Islands. The only surviving marine iguanas on Earth can crawl on the bottom of the ocean, feeding on seagrass and adapting to a marine lifestyle through underdeveloped webbed feet.
Two other marine animals (fur seals and sea lions) found in the waters near the Galapagos Islands are also endemic: Galapagos fur seals are the only tropical representative of the subantarctic genus and are nocturnal; Galapagos sea lions are active during the day.
The Galapagos Islands are indeed the rare pure land on earth that is not polluted. There are no ferocious predators on the island, and all animals are not afraid of humans. Here you can enjoy the joy (or fear) of "face to face" with wild animals that you may have never experienced.
The Galapagos Islands have received more attention from the Ecuadorian government since being included in the World Heritage List. They have been planned as national parks. The number of tourists who come here is strictly controlled by the government to ensure that the ecological environment on the island is not destroyed.
In September 1998, the Alcedo (Alquito) volcano (1097 meters) on Isabela Island erupted, and the flowing lava entered the habitat of elephant turtles. The Ecuadorian government dispatched helicopters to rescue, which became a hot news at the time .
The Colon Islands, formerly known as the Galapagos Islands, are located in the Pacific Ocean in the west of South America. It consists of 16 large islands and many small islands and reefs with a total area of about 7,976 square kilometers.
Turtle Island The Colon Islands are a group of islands formed after volcanic eruptions, full of rock cliffs and volcanic piles. However, there are many rare animals in the world that inhabit and grow here, the most peculiar of which is the sea turtle. These sea turtles can grow to more than 1 meter long, weigh more than 200 kilograms, and can carry one or two people on their backs. Turtles are very docile, they like to live in the grass on the coast, and they eat cactus as their staple food. In 1535, when the Spaniards first came here, they found that the island was full of large turtles, so they named the archipelago "Galapagos", which means "Turtle Island".
Large lizards are also peculiar animals here, both terrestrial and marine. The terrestrial ones are more than 1 meter long; the marine ones are more numerous than the terrestrial ones, and their bodies are larger than those of the terrestrial ones. The gray-black body drags a long tail, which looks like a dinosaur. It is said that the first ancestor of this large lizard was produced in the Mesozoic, and this animal is only found in the Colon Islands.
In this archipelago close to the equator, there are still animals such as penguins, albatrosses, and seals that can only survive in the cold polar regions. What's going on here? It turned out that when the Peruvian cold current from the polar region passed through here, the archipelago was "immersed" in the cold air current, so the temperature dropped significantly, forming a dry and cool climate. Penguins, seals, etc. came from the Antarctic waters with the cold current. "Tourists" are also happy to settle here.
In September 1835, Darwin came to the island to investigate on the British naval research ship. He found that the flora and fauna here have changed to adapt to the natural environment, such as the same species of birds and sea turtles living on different islands in different shapes and habits. This discovery made him realize that nature can also select species, providing strong evidence for his "survival of the fittest" evolutionary view. Later, in order to commemorate Darwin, Darwin's bronze bust monument and a biological observation station were built on the island, which is also known as the "living biological evolution museum".
