My Galapagos Santa Cruz Island Tour is the last stop for my itinerary. The highlight included Tortuga Bay, Rancho El Manzanillo & Charles Darwin Research Center.
Off the coast of Ecuador, the Galapagos archipelago consists of 21 islands with 18 being major. It’s located on the Nazca plate and is a volcanic hotspot. The youngest island, Isabela, has 5 volcanoes, including Sierra Negra, the most active in the Galapagos. The Galapagos National Park and Marine Reserve protect the land and water for research and conservation. The islands’ plant life is mostly semi-desert with shrubs, grasslands and dry forests. However, some islands have highlands with more rain and cooler temperatures.
Charles Darwin, the famous Naturalist from UK sailed to the Galapagos in 1835 on the HMS Beagle. He explored 4 of the islands, discovering species that compelled him to research evolutionary biology. Especially, the adaptations of the finches, marine iguanas and giant tortoises confirmed this theory. Therefore, this was the most influential ecosystem, from which he researched and published On the Origin of Species about natural selection.
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