23 June 2008: Galápagos is one of the best-conserved tropical oceanic archipelagos in the world (only 3% of the total land mass is inhabited by humans), and it is precisely its high biodiversity concentrated on land and in the sea that attracts tourists to this magical place, and because of this touristic appeal, most of Galapagos is well-conserved. In 1959, Ecuador designated 97% of the land area of Galapagos as a National Park, and then in 1986 the Galapagos Marine Resources Reserve was established, protecting the waters around the archipelago. The Galapagos Marine Reserve was created in 1998. Both the islands and the surrounding sea are designated as World Heritage Sites by UNESCO.

The world-famous land plants and animals of Galapagos include Darwin’s finches, giant tortoises, land iguanas, marine iguanas, tree cacti, and many lesser known but equally important members of the ecosystem.

One of the places to visit in Puerto Ayora, Santa Cruz is the Charles Darwin Research Station (CDRS), set up in 1964 and managed by the Charles Darwin Foundation. The Darwin Station works closely with the Galapagos National Park Service in protecting the Galapagos Islands and Galapagos Marine Reserve. The CDRS carries out a multitude of projects, ranging from the conservation of the once-endangered giant tortoises, eradicating invasive species such as feral goats, to monitoring the abundance of sea lions and fur seals in Galapagos.

It took us 30 minutes to walk to the Charles Darwin Research Station located in the north east of the town. We wanted to see the famous giant tortoises at the breeding center there.

A signboard explaining the importance of keeping out non-native species from the islands

Giant Prickly Pear Cactus  - The pads and fruits of this cactus provide an important part of the diet of tortoises and land iguanas.

 Yellow Warbler on a tree branch

A Giant Tortoise 

In the 1700’s, British and American sailors discovered that Galapagos giant tortoises could survive for more than one year in the hold of a ship without food or water. Stacking live tortoises like casks of brandy, the sailors captured an estimated 200,000 to serve as a source of non-perishable food. Needless to say, the giant tortoises became so reduced in numbers that they become endangered.

Look how big it is

 Snacking away

Thanks to the Darwin Foundation, the giant tortoise population is now restored to about 13,000, after 30 years of conservation work. Almost all of these tortoises are born and raised in the CDRS on the islands of Santa Cruz, Isabela and San Cristobal, after which they are slowly released into the wild.

The Galápagos Giant Tortoise actually gave the islands the name Galápagos.  Galápagos refers to a horse saddle in Spanish, and the saddle greatly resembles the shell of one of two major types of tortoises (saddleback tortoises and dome-shaped tortoises).

No one really knows how long these tortoises can live, but growth ring approximations on their shells indicate a life span of at least 150 years.

It’s not just the tortoises that are gigantic in proportions, so too are the locusts on Galapagos! The Large Painted Locust (Schistocerca melanocera) is really huge, measuring at least 8cm long. This brightly colored grasshopper is almost everywhere in Galapagos (on all islands except Espanola), especially in areas where there is grass and vegetation. They don’t just hop, they fly around and can be very annoying.

 The vegetation around the Charles Darwin Research Station

 Giant Prickly Pear Cacti

That’s Lonesome George’s living area. Lonesome George is a giant tortoise, the last surviving member of his subspecies. The last of the G. abingdoni - a saddleback race. He was discovered in 1971, and is now living at the CDRS in Puerto Ayora. Attempts to mate him with another subspecies have been futile, and it remains to be seen if his line can continue. Tragic.

When we visited his living area, we saw a sign that he was moved to the CDRS in Isabela, but we didn’t see him at Isabela either.

 The Smooth-billed Ani (Crotophaga ani) is an entirely black bird with a very large bill. It was introduced around 1970 by farmers in the mistaken belief that it would help control cattle ticks.

 A dead newly hatched bird we found on the boardwalk

A yellow Land Iguana in an enclosure at the Charles Darwin Research Station

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