The Galápagos archipelago – comprising around 13 islands – belongs to Ecuador. It lies on the equator some 1,000km off South America’s west coast. At that latitude you’d expect lush, tropical vegetation, impenetrable rain forests and oppressive humidity.
The islands are anything but.
Born of wild volcanic activity, their dominant feature is solidified lava. They are bleak and arid and vegetation is sparse. The seas are frigid because the icy Humboldt current (originating near Antarctica) sweeps up through the islands. In short, an unlikely home for fauna and flora – of any sort.
But that is the paradox of the Galápagos.
The islands are teeming with life of the most extraordinary variety, the diversity more remarkable given the modest geographical footprint. The wildlife includes species that are endemic (not found anywhere else on the planet) – among them marine iguanas, giant tortoises, flightless cormorants and the Galápagos penguin.
And, as Darwin discovered, there are subtle but distinct variations within individual species – particularly noticeable among tortoises and birds on the different islands. This piqued his interest and shaped his theory that species evolve according to the environment in which they live.
The idea had have created all species in their final form was an outrageous, heretical notion in the conservative Victorian age. Even though it was an immediate best-seller, Darwin and his book were widely denounced.
