Charles Darwin Research Station - Puerto Ayora, Santa Cruz, Galapagos Islands, Ecuador
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Charles Darwin Research Station Puerto Ayora
Headed by a team of more than two hundred scientists, educators, research volunteers and support staff, this world-wide foundation is dedicated to preserving the Galapagos ecosystems.
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Travel blogs from Charles Darwin Research Station:
- ... say, hey don't even go there So the biggest Galapagos moment for Lard-Ass, was when he jumped the fence at the Charles Darwin Research Station (on Isla Santa Cruz) in order to get a close up photo, as well as pat Lonesome George (the famous giant ...
- ... It was also home to The Charles Darwin Research Station, a mere a 2 minute taxi ride from the centre of the town ...
- ... Scientists at the Charles Darwin Research Station are breeding several species and rearing them until they are big enough to be released back ...
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Photos from:
- Puerto Ayora, Santa Cruz, Galapagos Islands, Ecuador
Photos in this video:
- Turtle in Charles Darwin Research Station by Mtantow from a blog titled A 'once in a lifetime' experience
- Visit to the Charles Darwin Research Station by Paulfeuerborn
- Tortoise at Charles Darwin Research Station by Nomad_chad from a blog titled Islands Unlike Any Other
- Day 4 Charles Darwin Research Station by Caznjasonescape from a blog titled Week 3 - Frisky Tortoises and Shady Sharks....
- Charles Darwin Research Station by Varney from a blog titled Galapagos!
????Visiting the Charles Darwin Research Center in Galapagos Islands ????????Santa Cruz Island Ecuador
Each island within the Galapagos has a unique species of tortoise. Visiting the Charles Darwin Research Center on Santa Cruz is a great way to see the different sub-species of Galapagos tortoises, the Galapagos finches, and many of the other plant species.
Although it is not uncommon to stumble upon some of these gentle giants as you begin exploring the island outside of Puerto Ayora, the research center provides a great way to get up close to the best part - BABY TURTLES! The site is also the former home of the late Lonesome George, the last of his sub-species of tortoise.
We had rented bikes for the day so we took the rest of the daylight exploring the island and stumbling into various tanning spots for the marine iguanas. As usual, we opted to avoid the touristy crowds and dine with the locals, so we capped the night off with dinner and drinks at a night-market hidden just off the main strip (Av. Seymour).
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Locations - Charles Darwin Research Center, Puerto Ayora, Isla Santa Cruz, Galapagos Islands, Ecuador.
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Galápagos 2012: The Charles Darwin Research Station
The one thing that everybody visiting Puerto Ayora has GOT to see is the Charles Darwin Research Station (CDRS). It is operated by the Fundacion Charles Darwin which was set up in 1959, on the centenary of Darwin's visit to the archipelago, a pivotal event in his thinking and research. The CDRS has been operational for almost fifty years now. It has a double purpose - to carry out research into the unique animal and plant life of the islands, and into the conservation efforts that need to be made on the one hand, and to present the results of this research to the governing bodies of the republic of Ecuador, so that the latter can make the best possible decisions for the future of the national park and marine reserve, founded on solid science and facts.
For tourists, parts of the CDRS are open to the public, and you can see some of the animals who live there, rare plant life, and parts of their tortoise breeding program. Of course we were super excited to see all this. Maybe some parts of it more than others. ;-) This video shows the scenery around the CDRS, buildings, the store etc. I have animal videos coming up. :-)
Charles Darwin Research Center in Puerto Ayora, Galapagos Islands
On the island of Santa Cruz the Charles Darwin Research Center is a place to learn about the endemic animals of the Galapagos Island. This is essentially free since its entrance is included in the tariff you had to pay to enter the islands.
Charles Darwin Research Station, Santa Cruz Island, Galápagos Islands, Ecuador, South America
The Charles Darwin Research Station (CDRS) is a biological research station operated by the Charles Darwin Foundation. It is located in Puerto Ayora on Santa Cruz Island in the Galapagos Islands, with satellite offices on Isabela and San Cristóbal islands. In Puerto Ayora, Santa Cruz Island, Ecuadorian and foreign scientists work constantly on research and projects for conservation of the Galapagos terrestrial and marine ecosystems. The Charles Darwin Research Station, established in 1964, has a Natural History Interpretation Centre and also carries out educational projects in support of conservation of the Galápagos Islands. The objectives of the CDRS is to conduct scientific research and environmental education for conservation. The Station has a team of over a hundred scientists, educators, volunteers, research students and support staff from all over the world. Scientific research and monitoring projects are conducted at the CDRS in conjunction and cooperation with its chief partner, the Galapagos National Park Service (GNPS), which functions as the principal government authority in charge of conservation and natural resource issues in the Galapagos. The work of the CDRS has as its main objectives: to promote, facilitate, design, and implement the scientific investigation necessary for the understanding of biological principles, better understanding of ecosystems, and adequate management of the islands' natural resources; to advise the Ecuadorian authorities on the subject of conservation and management of natural resources in the Galapagos Islands; to collaborate with Ecuadorian institutions on the implementation of programs involved in scientific investigation and education on the islands; to contribute to the development of scientific and technical personnel from Ecuador who are specialized in natural sciences and natural resource management; to contribute and collaborate on educational programs related to the conservation of the islands; to compile the results of the scientific investigations and the other activities of the organization and to disseminate this information regionally, nationally, and internationally. In 2002, the Station was awarded the International Cosmos Prize.
GALAPAGOS 12_Fish Market Puerto Ayora. Santa Cruz Island. Galapagos.
see the friendly sea lion and pelicans feeding on
n the discarded entrails.
Puerto Ayora is a town in central Galápagos, Ecuador. Located on the southern shore of Santa Cruz Island, it is the seat of Santa Cruz Canton. The town is named in honor of Isidro Ayora, an Ecuadorian president. The town is sometimes mistakenly referred to as Santa Cruz.[1][2]
Puerto Ayora is the most populous town in the Galápagos Islands, with more than 12,000 inhabitants. Puerto Ayora has the best developed infrastructure in the archipelago. The larger of the two Galápagos banks, Banco del Pacifico, is located in Puerto Ayora, as well as schools, hotels, restaurants, clothing stores, hardware stores, grocery stores, marine stores, tourist shops and night clubs. It is the best place in Galápagos for communicating with the outside world via numerous cybercafes with Internet access or telephone offices. Puerto Ayora emergency medical facilities include a new hospital opened in 2006 and the island's only hyperbaric chamber.
The main Avenue is named Avenida Charles Darwin and begins on the main dock of Puerto Ayora and finishes at the Charles Darwin Research Station.[3] Home to both the Charles Darwin Foundation and the Galápagos National Park, Puerto Ayora is the center of the Galápagos conservation efforts. Island visitors may visit the Charles Darwin Research Station to learn the history of the islands and future conservation plans. North Seymour Island is an hour away by boat and has a wide array of animals with no people living on the island.
【K】Ecuador Travel-Galapagos[에콰도르 여행-갈라파고스]찰스다윈 연구센터/Charles Darwin Research Station/National Park
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갈라파고스 제도는 에콰도르에서 가장 유명한 국립공원으로 “종의 기원”을 발표한 찰스 다윈에 의해 더욱 유명해졌다 매년 22만 명의 관광객이 이곳 갈라파고스를 찾는다 산타크루즈 섬에 있는 찰스 다윈 연구센터 이곳에서는 갈라파고스의 생태계를 보호하기 위해 다양한 연구와 프로젝트를 진행하고 있다 특히 멸종위기의 코끼리 거북이를 보호하기 위해 사육하고 있다 갈라파고스는 안장을 뜻하는 옛 스페인어로 이 코끼리 거북의 등딱지 모양에서 유래한 것이다 이곳에서는 갓 부화된 새끼거북이를 비롯해 백년 넘게 나이 먹은 큰 거북이를 볼 수 있다 갈라파고스에는 진귀한 파충류가 있는데 이구아나이다. 이구아나는 머리와 턱이 아주 특이하게 잘 발달되어 있는데 이것은 먹이와 연관이 깊다. 용암 바위로 이뤄진 갈라파고스에서 먹을 것이라고는 선인장밖에 없는데 가시달린 선인장을 통째로 잘 먹기 위해 턱과 머리 그리고 발이 발달한 것이다 다윈의 진화론을 거론할 때 등장하는 새가 핀치 새이다. 마치 우리나라 참새처럼 자그마한 새이다 갈라파고스 핀치는 14종이나 되는데 지형적으로 고립되고 환경에 적응해서 다양한 부리형태를 가지고 있다. 씨를 잘 먹기 위해 부리가 두터워진 녀석, 벌레잡기 위해 부리가 뾰족해진 녀석 등 환경에 맞게 진화하게 된 것이다 갈라파고스에서는 이렇게 지척에서 핀치 새를 비롯해 다양한 새들이 먹이활동을 하는 것을 관찰할 수 있다
[English: Google Translator]
Galapagos Islands The Origin of Species, announced one became more famous by Charles Darwin, look for the 22 million tourists here in the Galapagos every year the ecosystem of the Charles Darwin Research Center Galapagos Here in Santa Cruz, the island's most famous national park in Ecuador protection has progressed a variety of research projects and to, especially bred to protect the elephant turtles endangered Galapagos is derived from the carapace shape of an elephant turtles in old Spanish word for saddle freshly hatched the turtles Here There hundreds of years to see big turtles eat more than age, including the Galapagos reptiles there is a there is a rare iguanas. There are iguanas head and jaw is well developed, very closely associated with this specific prey. I do not eat that as the lava rock in the Galapagos yirwojin cactus chin and head outside to eat well with a cactus thorn And the whole foot will be developed
[Spanish: Google Translator]
Islas Galápagos El origen de las especies, anunció uno se convirtió más famosa de Charles Darwin, busque los 22 millones de turistas aquí en las Galápagos cada año el ecosistema del Centro de Investigación Charles Darwin Galapagos Aquí en Santa Cruz, el parque nacional más famoso de la isla en Ecuador protección ha progresado de una variedad de proyectos de investigación y, especialmente criados para proteger a las tortugas en peligro de elefantes Galápagos se deriva de la forma de caparazón de una tortuga de elefantes en la antigua palabra española para silla recién eclosionadas las tortugas Aquí hay cientos de años para ver grandes tortugas comen más de edad, incluyendo los reptiles Galápagos hay una hay una rara iguanas. Hay iguanas cabeza y la mandíbula está bien desarrollada, muy estrechamente asociada con esta presa específica. Yo no como que a medida que la roca de lava en el mentón cactus yirwojin Galápagos y la cabeza fuera a comer bien con una espina de cactus y todo el pie se desarrollará
[Information]
■클립명: 남미008-에콰도르03-02 갈라파고스, 찰스다윈 연구센터/Galapagos/Charles Darwin Research Station/National Park/Santa Cruz Island/Iguana
■여행, 촬영, 편집, 원고: 표만석 PD (travel, filming, editing, writing: KBS TV Producer)
■촬영일자: 2015년 2월 February
[Keywords]
남미,America,아메리카,에콰도르,Ecuador,Ecuador,,표만석,2015,2월 February,갈라파고스,Galapagos,Galápagos
GALAPAGOS 10_ CHARLES DARWIN STATION. Puerto Ayora. Santa Cruz.Island.
SATURDAY - AM
19th Dec 2015
Puerto Ayora, Santa Cruz Island
The main population center of the islands, Puerto Ayora is home to the National Park Service tortoise-breeding center and the Charles Darwin Research Station. You will be able to visit the breeding center and walk through the Research Station. You will also have the opportunity to take a bus ride to the highlands to observe giant tortoises in the wild and walk through a lava tunnel. In addition, you will have an exclusive opportunity to participate in the Scalesia reforestation project.
More than 500 photos and 65 video clips went into making this movie.
Charles Darwin Center - Galapagos, Puerto Ayora
Don't miss the Charles Darwin Center, and the Galapagos tortoises.
Walk down into the earth in what looks like a subway tunnel, but was made by hot lava!
See the sea lions. One mom was still wet and the baby too as she was just born.
Visit for more information.
Charles Darwin Research Station | Galápagos | Lindblad Expeditions-National Geographic
Every Lindblad-National Geographic Galápagos expedition includes a visit to the Charles Darwin Research Station to see the ongoing science and learn about how tortoises have been repatriated to islands here. Video by Mark Coger.
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Charles Darwin Research Station, Galapagos
Located in Puerto Ayora, Galapagos, Ecuador, the Charles Darwin Research Station helps preserve the ecology of the Galapagos, including birds and tortoises.
Charles Darwin Research Station Santa Cruz Galapagos Islands
Charles Darwin Research Station in Puerto Ayora is involved in research, conservation and breeding of the Galapagos Island Giant Tortoise. There is a boardwalk around the breeding centre and inside, a preserved tortoise known as Lonesome George. Background music is New Land by Albis.
Top 10 Best Things To Do in Puerto Ayora, Ecuador
Puerto Ayora Travel Guide. MUST WATCH. Top 10 things you have to do in Puerto Ayora. We have sorted Tourist Attractions in Puerto Ayora for You. Discover Puerto Ayora as per the Traveler Resources given by our Travel Specialists. You will not miss any fun thing to do in Puerto Ayora.
This Video has covered top 10 Best Things to do in Puerto Ayora.
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List of Best Things to do in Puerto Ayora, Ecuador
Las Grietas
Reserva El Chato
Charles Darwin Research Station
Santa Cruz Fish Market
El Garrapatero
Laguna las Ninfas
Playa de los Alemanes
Malecon de Puerto Ayora
Galeria Aymara
Playa de los Perros
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Las Grietas, Puerto Ayora, Santa Cruz, Galapagos Islands, Ecuador, South America
Las Grietas are volcanic rock walls where it enters the sea. They are spectacular and the path that leads to them offers very interesting natural features (beaches, mangroves, iguanas breeding areas, salt). Be part of the other side of the port of Puerto Ayora and you just have to follow directions. Wear good shoes because the trail is quite rocky in some sections. You can not do any other way. Puerto Ayora is a town in central Galápagos, Ecuador. Located on the southern shore of Santa Cruz Island, it is the seat of Santa Cruz Canton. The town is named in honor of Isidro Ayora, an Ecuadorian president. The town is sometimes mistakenly referred to as Santa Cruz. Puerto Ayora at night on the Island of Santa Cruz in the Galapagos Islands in Ecuador. Fresh Water Swimming in Puerto Ayora, Galapagos on the Island of Santa Cruz. Puerto Ayora is the most populous town in the Galápagos Islands, with more than 12,000 inhabitants. Puerto Ayora has the best developed infrastructure in the archipelago. The larger of the two Galápagos banks, Banco del Pacifico, is located in Puerto Ayora, as well as schools, hotels, restaurants, clothing stores, hardware stores, grocery stores, marine stores, tourist shops and night clubs. It is the best place in Galápagos for communicating with the outside world via numerous cybercafes with Internet access or telephone offices. Puerto Ayora emergency medical facilities include a new hospital opened in 2006 and the island's only hyperbaric chamber. The main Avenue is named Avenida Charles Darwin and begins on the main dock of Puerto Ayora and finish in the Charles Darwin Research Station. Home to both the Charles Darwin Foundation and the Galápagos National Park, Puerto Ayora is the center of the Galápagos conservation efforts. Island visitors may visit the Charles Darwin Research Station to learn the history of the islands and future conservation plans. North Seymour Island is an hour away by boat and has a wide array of animals with no people living on the island. Tortuga Bay is a short walk from center of Puerto Ayora where you can view marine iguanas, birds, galapagos crabs and a natural mangrove where you can spot white tip reef sharks and the gigantic galápagos tortoise. Puerto Ayora has a protected location, along the shores of Academy Bay, where a refreshing breeze often provides pleasant weather. Temperatures vary between 18 and 29 °C (64 and 82 °F). The hot season usually runs from December to May.The Itabaca Channel is located between two islands in the Galápagos, Baltra Island, also known as South Seymour Island and Santa Cruz Island. The Itabaca Channel is used by water taxis who take people from Baltra to Santa Cruz. Academy Bay is a busy harbor, normally full of boats cruising the islands, passing private yachts and local fishing boats. This bay is a good location to spot brown pelicans, golden rays, marine iguanas, herons, lava gulls, frigate birds, Galápagos sea lions, and large numbers of blue-footed boobies, which fish by spectacular plunge diving. Fresh water is at a premium on the island and in this town. Locals practice water conservation and typically collect rainwater during the rainy season. There is a desalination plant on the island. Many facilities have separate water systems with varying degrees of use/quality. For example, water used for cleaning/showering may not be potable.
Puerto Ayora, Santa Cruz, Galapagos Islands, Galapagos, Ecuador, South America
Puerto Ayora is a town in central Galápagos, Ecuador. Located on the southern shore of Santa Cruz Island, it is the seat of Santa Cruz Canton. The town is named in honor of Isidro Ayora, an Ecuadorian president. The town is sometimes mistakenly referred to as Santa Cruz. Puerto Ayora at night on the Island of Santa Cruz in the Galapagos Islands in Ecuador. Fresh Water Swimming in Puerto Ayora, Galapagos on the Island of Santa Cruz. Puerto Ayora is the most populous town in the Galápagos Islands, with more than 12,000 inhabitants. Puerto Ayora has the best developed infrastructure in the archipelago. The larger of the two Galápagos banks, Banco del Pacifico, is located in Puerto Ayora, as well as schools, hotels, restaurants, clothing stores, hardware stores, grocery stores, marine stores, tourist shops and night clubs. It is the best place in Galápagos for communicating with the outside world via numerous cybercafes with Internet access or telephone offices. Puerto Ayora emergency medical facilities include a new hospital opened in 2006 and the island's only hyperbaric chamber. The main Avenue is named Avenida Charles Darwin and begins on the main dock of Puerto Ayora and finish in the Charles Darwin Research Station. Home to both the Charles Darwin Foundation and the Galápagos National Park, Puerto Ayora is the center of the Galápagos conservation efforts. Island visitors may visit the Charles Darwin Research Station to learn the history of the islands and future conservation plans. North Seymour Island is an hour away by boat and has a wide array of animals with no people living on the island. Tortuga Bay is a short walk from center of Puerto Ayora where you can view marine iguanas, birds, galapagos crabs and a natural mangrove where you can spot white tip reef sharks and the gigantic galápagos tortoise. Puerto Ayora has a protected location, along the shores of Academy Bay, where a refreshing breeze often provides pleasant weather. Temperatures vary between 18 and 29 °C (64 and 82 °F). The hot season usually runs from December to May.The Itabaca Channel is located between two islands in the Galápagos, Baltra Island, also known as South Seymour Island and Santa Cruz Island. The Itabaca Channel is used by water taxis who take people from Baltra to Santa Cruz. Academy Bay is a busy harbor, normally full of boats cruising the islands, passing private yachts and local fishing boats. This bay is a good location to spot brown pelicans, golden rays, marine iguanas, herons, lava gulls, frigate birds, Galápagos sea lions, and large numbers of blue-footed boobies, which fish by spectacular plunge diving. Fresh water is at a premium on the island and in this town. Locals practice water conservation and typically collect rainwater during the rainy season. There is a desalination plant on the island. Many facilities have separate water systems with varying degrees of use/quality. For example, water used for cleaning/showering may not be potable.
Puerto Ayora, Santa Cruz, Galapagos Islands, Galapagos, Ecuador, South America
Puerto Ayora is a town in central Galápagos, Ecuador. Located on the southern shore of Santa Cruz Island, it is the seat of Santa Cruz Canton. The town is named in honor of Isidro Ayora, an Ecuadorian president. The town is sometimes mistakenly referred to as Santa Cruz. Puerto Ayora at night on the Island of Santa Cruz in the Galapagos Islands in Ecuador. Fresh Water Swimming in Puerto Ayora, Galapagos on the Island of Santa Cruz. Puerto Ayora is the most populous town in the Galápagos Islands, with more than 12,000 inhabitants. Puerto Ayora has the best developed infrastructure in the archipelago. The larger of the two Galápagos banks, Banco del Pacifico, is located in Puerto Ayora, as well as schools, hotels, restaurants, clothing stores, hardware stores, grocery stores, marine stores, tourist shops and night clubs. It is the best place in Galápagos for communicating with the outside world via numerous cybercafes with Internet access or telephone offices. Puerto Ayora emergency medical facilities include a new hospital opened in 2006 and the island's only hyperbaric chamber. The main Avenue is named Avenida Charles Darwin and begins on the main dock of Puerto Ayora and finish in the Charles Darwin Research Station. Home to both the Charles Darwin Foundation and the Galápagos National Park, Puerto Ayora is the center of the Galápagos conservation efforts. Island visitors may visit the Charles Darwin Research Station to learn the history of the islands and future conservation plans. North Seymour Island is an hour away by boat and has a wide array of animals with no people living on the island. Tortuga Bay is a short walk from center of Puerto Ayora where you can view marine iguanas, birds, galapagos crabs and a natural mangrove where you can spot white tip reef sharks and the gigantic galápagos tortoise. Puerto Ayora has a protected location, along the shores of Academy Bay, where a refreshing breeze often provides pleasant weather. Temperatures vary between 18 and 29 °C (64 and 82 °F). The hot season usually runs from December to May.The Itabaca Channel is located between two islands in the Galápagos, Baltra Island, also known as South Seymour Island and Santa Cruz Island. The Itabaca Channel is used by water taxis who take people from Baltra to Santa Cruz. Academy Bay is a busy harbor, normally full of boats cruising the islands, passing private yachts and local fishing boats. This bay is a good location to spot brown pelicans, golden rays, marine iguanas, herons, lava gulls, frigate birds, Galápagos sea lions, and large numbers of blue-footed boobies, which fish by spectacular plunge diving. Fresh water is at a premium on the island and in this town. Locals practice water conservation and typically collect rainwater during the rainy season. There is a desalination plant on the island. Many facilities have separate water systems with varying degrees of use/quality. For example, water used for cleaning/showering may not be potable.
Charles Darwin Research Station - Puerto Ayora
Giant Tortoises - a lot of them!
Galápagos tortoise, Charles Darwin Research Station, Santa Cruz Island, Galápagos Islands, Ecuador
The Galápagos tortoise or Galápagos giant tortoise is the largest living species of tortoise and the 14th-heaviest living reptile. Modern giant tortoises can weigh up to 250 kg; even larger versions, now extinct, roamed every continent except Antarctica and Australia into the Pleistocene. Today, they exist only on two remote archipelagos: the Galápagos 1000 km due west of Ecuador, and Aldabra in the Indian Ocean, 700 km east of Tanzania. The tortoise is native to seven of the Galápagos Islands, a volcanic archipelago about 1,000 km west of the Ecuadorian mainland. With lifespans in the wild of over 100 years, it is one of the longest-lived vertebrates. A captive individual lived at least 170 years. Tortoises are not likely to migrate, as they are too big and have an extremely slow metabolism. Spanish explorers, who discovered the islands in the 16th century, named them after the Spanish galápago, meaning tortoise. Tortoises also live very uncomplicated lives, and can nap up to 16 hours a day. Shell size and shape vary between populations. On islands with humid highlands, the tortoises are larger, with domed shells and short necks; on islands with dry lowlands, the tortoises are smaller, with saddleback shells and long necks. Charles Darwin's observations of these differences on the second voyage of the Beagle in 1835, contributed to the development of his theory of evolution. Darwin was highly impressed by these giants, although he referred to them as “antediluvian” and “giant monsters”, less than affectionate terms.
Tortoise numbers declined from over 250,000 in the 16th century to a low of around 3,000 in the 1970s. This decline was caused by overexploitation of the species for meat and oil, habitat clearance for agriculture, and introduction of non-native animals to the islands, such as rats, goats, and pigs. The extinction of most giant tortoise lineages is thought to have also been caused by predation by humans or human ancestors. Tortoise populations on at least three islands have become extinct in historical time due to human activities. Specimens of these extinct taxa exist in several museums and also are being subjected to DNA analysis. Ten subspecies of the original 15 survive in the wild; an 11th subspecies had only a single known living individual, kept in captivity and nicknamed Lonesome George until his death in June 2012. Conservation efforts, beginning in the 20th century, have resulted in thousands of captive-bred juveniles being released onto their ancestral home islands, and the total number of the species is estimated to have exceeded 19,000 at the start of the 21st century. Despite this rebound, the species as a whole is classified as vulnerable by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. The discoverer of the Galápagos Islands, Fray Tomás de Berlanga, Bishop of Panama, wrote in 1535 of such big tortoises that each could carry a man on top of himself. Naturalist Charles Darwin remarked after his trip three centuries later in 1835, These animals grow to an immense size ... several so large that it required six or eight men to lift them from the ground. The largest recorded individuals have reached weights of over 400 kg and lengths of 1.87 meters. Size overlap is extensive with the Aldabra giant tortoise however taken as a species, the Galápagos tortoise seems to average slightly larger, with weights in excess of 185 kg being slightly more commonplace. Weights in the larger bodied subspecies range from 272 to 317 kg in mature males and from 136 to 181 kg in adult females. However, the size is variable across the islands and subspecies, those from Pinzón Island are relatively small with a maximum known weight of 76 kg and carapace length of approximately 61 cm compared to 75 to 150 cm range in tortoises from Santa Cruz Island. The tortoises' gigantism was probably a preadapted condition for successful colonisation of these remote oceanic islands rather than an example of evolved insular gigantism. Large tortoises would have a greater chance of surviving the journey over water from the mainland as they can hold their heads a greater height above the water level and have a smaller surface area/volume ratio, which reduces osmotic water loss. Their significant water and fat reserves would allow the tortoises to survive long ocean crossings without food or fresh water, and to endure the drought-prone climate of the islands. A larger size allowed them to better tolerate extremes of temperature due to gigantothermy. Fossil giant tortoises from mainland South America have been described that support this hypothesis of preadapted gigantism. The tortoises are ectothermic, so bask for 1–2 hours after dawn to absorb the sun's heat through their dark shells before actively foraging for 8–9 hours a day. They travel mostly in the early morning or late afternoon between resting and grazing areas.
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Thank you
Dan
Vagabondbuddha.com
Here is a table of contents for this youtube video:
Galapagos Islands Entry Permits
00:02 Guayaquil Airport: How to Get Galapagos Park Entry Permit
Ferry and Bus from Baltra Airport to Puerto Ayora
01:03 How to get from Baltra Airport Galapagos to Puerto Ayora Santa Cruz Galapagos
Darwin Research Center
02:31 Walking to Darwin Research Center, Santa Cruz, Galapagos
02:50 Path of the Tortoise, Darwin Research Center, Santa Cruz, Galapagos
03:50 Story of Charles Darwin, 22 years old, Sailed on “The Beagle” to Galapagos
05:37 Giant Tortoises, Darwin Research Center, Santa Cruz, Galapagos
9:44 Large Cactus Tree
10:02 Yellow Iguanas
10:30 Dan discusses significance of Darwin’s Research to Science
12:35 Marine Iguanas,
Las Grietas—The Cracks
13:50 Boat to the path, Germain Beach, $1 person
14:42 Path to Las Grietas (Blue Herron)
15:43 Beach on way to Las Grietas
16:45 Dan discussing Las Grietas Swimming Hole
Las Gemelos (The Twins)
18:20 Los Gemelos, collapsed area, sink holes.
Lava Tunnels, near Tortoise Reserve in highland of Santa Cruz, Galapagos
19:45 Dan, Lava Tunnel Introduction
20:25 Qiang Hui, Lava Tunnel near Tortoise Reserve
21:00 Qiang Hui Crawling in lava tunnel
Rancho Primicias Turtle Reserve
21:37 Dan Introducing Rancho Primicias Tortoise Reserve
Laguna de las Ninfas (Lake of Nymphs)
23:02 Introduction to Laguna de las Ninfas
23:56 Mangroves Forest, 4 Kinds of Mangrove trees
Playa El Garrapatero, Santa Cruz, Galapagos
24:48 Trail Head to Garrapatero Beach
25:12 Manzanillo Trees, Toxic trees and apples, Snow White Apples
Puerto Ayora Fish Market, Santa Cruz Island, Galapagos
27:08 Ayora Fish Market
Tortuga Bahia (Tortoise Bay), Santa Cruz Island, Galapagos
27:32 Tortuga Bay, Trail Head
28:34 Tortuga Bay, White Sand Beaches
29:10 Go to the end of the white sand and turn right
Walking Charles Darwin Avenue in Puerto Ayora, Santa Cruz, Galapagos
33:23 Walking Tour of Puerto Ayora
33:37 Andrea Valerio, Ecuadorian Cuisine
33:54 Red Tuna Restaurant
34:08 La Garapata Restaurant?
34:14 Galapagos Bongo Bar
34:18 La Panga Discoteca
34:26 The Rock Restaurant (Happy Hour)
34:39 $5 Lunch Specials in Puerto Ayora, Santa Cruz
35:09 Tickets for Ferries to other Islands, $30.00 person
35:38 Largest Grocery Store
35:54 Tourist Pier, Water Taxis, Sea Lions on Dock
36:57 Ferry to Isabela Island, Galapagos
Ecuador - Galápagos - Charles Darwin Research Center
The Charles Darwin Research Station works on research and projects for conservation of the Galápagos terrestrial and marine ecosystems.
We visited Ecuador on our overland trip from the Netherlands to South Africa and South America; see our channel for hundreds of clips.
The used background music is Passacaglia in D minor, BuxWV 161 (Arrangment for Strings & Basso Continuo by New Trinity Baroque) downloaded from MusOpen ( It has been identified as Attribution 3.0 Unported (CC BY 3.0).