27 June 2008: Isabela island, Galapagos

 Words can’t describe how wonderful it is to be so close up to wild animals on Galapagos. Here, two sea lions were napping on a footpath leading to the dock.

The Fishermen’s Dock where locals dock their fishing boats. This was also our point of entry by boat from Santa Cruz island to Isabela.

 Mangrove lagoon where the Fishermen’s Dock is

Another two sea lions taking an afternoon nap near the dock

 

Black-necked stilt

We visited the Charles Darwin Research Station on Isabela island which also houses a giant tortoise breeding center.

 

The CDRS is where giant tortoises are hatched from eggs and reared to maturity before they are released back into the wild.

There are five large-shield volcanoes on Isabela, and each volcano is the habitat of a different species. Incredible isn’t it? Each volcano is separated from the other by a lava flow, impassable to the giant tortoises - an excellent example of species variation owing to topographical isolation.

A juvenile

A ‘very’ young tortoise eating grass

 Birds that have changed the world -Here are two Small Ground Finches (Geospiza fuliginosa) just outside of the CDRS.

The 13 species of finches on Galapagos are collectively known as ‘Darwin’s finches’. Each species is easily identifiable by its beak, and also by location. The type of beak corresponds to the type of food that is eaten. Darwin’s finches help to explain how life has developed and evolved. Observing these finches first hand made us appreciate the role that they have played in the history of human thought.

 

 

 

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