Graham Taylor
Galapagos Paper
The Galapagos Islands are a unique archipelago that are products of hot spot volcanism and create a matchless place both in terms of geology and biology. The Galapagos Islands represent an unparalleled experience for any visitor to the islands. The sheer thrills of approaching a sea lion or seeing a penguin swim by you is just the beginnings of these enchanted islands. The islands are home to many wondrous animals, but they allow an observer to take away the importance of just how connected humans are or cannot be connected with the world around them. The area is filled with vivacity between geologic forces, organic life, and the recent presence of humans. The islands allow an individual to see first hand the interactions that lead to the theory of evolution, the geology of hot spot volcanism, the importance of resource conservation, and a greater discovery of one’s self.
In the Galapagos Islands the hot spot volcanism creates an intense area of volcanic activity. The frequent eruptions of volcanoes and the resulting basaltic lava flow create the islands that are seen today. The islands each have examples and products of the volcanism that created them. Lava tubes are the product of basaltic lava flows where the lava being exposed to the surface forms a solid crust allowing the lava below to stay insulated and continue to flow as a liquid. The lava will sometimes drain resulting in the empty tunnels that can be seen on Floreana, Isabella, and Bartolome Island. These lava tubes range in size depending on the amount of lava that dries and can be tiny to extremely large, and are able to fit many people inside the tubes comfortably. These lava tubes are one physical example of the basaltic lava flows. When basaltic lava flows cool externally, depending on the flow and the rate of freezing, the results are pahoehoe lava flow which is a smooth ropelike lava or a’a’ lava flow which results in erratic sharp lava flow. These lava flows are seen on Isabella just outside Puerto Villamil. The pahoehoe lava flow when walked on is still comfortable for the feet to walk across and maintains its dark black look compared to the spiky look of a’a’ which is sharp just to place a hand across it. These products are all results of the lava flows that form the islands.
The various shield volcanoes found around the archipelago that are no longer volcanically active have often become cinder cones which can be seen excellently from the top of Bartolome looking out into Santiago island. These cinder cones are piles of scouria formed at an inclined angle that resemble the shield volcanoes which formed them. The scoria is composed of the liquid lava that was shot into the air and solidifies before coming into contact on the ground with the volcano.
The Galapagos Islands have undergone physical changes. The products of faults are present on the islands and while not necessarily visible to the naked eye their effects are seen in the landscape when looked for. Graben Valleys are the results of faults and are seen at Academy Valley in Puerto Ayora and on Santa Fe Island in Barrington Bay. When arriving at the shore of Barrington Bay the Graben is the valley that is the downward wall while on both sides the horst walls are upward with respect to the Graben wall. Graben valleys are evidence of normal faults acting on the islands. The Galapagos Archipelago provides evidence of geologic activity and the effect that these interactions may have on the environment. The geologic activity of the local area is also interacting with the biological life of the Galapagos.
The physical environment of the islands has created unique conditions for the islands causing the biological organisms of the islands to adapt to the surroundings around them. The mangroves are a group of plants that have adapted to the lack of fresh water in the area and instead take root on the small coastal zone that exist on each island or the lagoons located within some of the islands. The mangroves are not closely related to one another and are distinguishable by their leaves. Mangroves are common along the coastline and have the ability to process salt water and excrete salt through their leaves. The mangroves are able to take root in saltwater and along beaches reproducing by dropping seeds or fruit into the water and allowing the water to transport the seeds along the shoreline. The lack of competition along the shoreline allows these plants to dominate the coastlines as visible in Puerto Villamil. The mangroves adaptations to the saltwater environment have allowed them to flourish across the islands.
The land tortoises of the islands have evolved into individual species based on the geologic isolation of the islands. The volcanoes of Isabella have created impassable barriers with steep terrain or lava flows that the tortoises could not cross to breed with one another. This isolation has created five separate species on Isabella alone. These tortoises remained separated for so long that even when they meet today they are no longer able to mate with one another. The single species of tortoises have evolved into different species due to the impact of the volcanoes on the environment.
The marine iguana has adapted to the coldwater of the surrounding water currents. These iguanas make use of the black rocks along the coastline to provide for an excellent conductor of heat. Since the marine iguana feeds on algae along these black rocks and in water, their body temperatures will drop due to the severe coldness of the water. With no way for the marine iguana to internally control their body temperatures the marine iguana is forced to rely on the sun to heat them up. Hundreds of marine iguanas will gather on these black rocks across the Galapagos using the rocks and each other as conductors of heat to maintain a body temperature that allows the marine iguana to have the body temperature to move when needed. The biological community responds to the characteristics of the physical environment by adapting and changing to the world around it in order to survive and optimize their lives.
The biological community of the Galapagos Archipelago is constantly interacting with each other in traditional prey predator relationships as well as more subtle ways. One of the most common trees in the Galapagos is the Palo Santo trees which dominates the arid zone and some of the transition zones on these islands. These trees are easily identifiable by their white bark. However, their white/grey bark is actually the work of crustose lichen covering the tree in almost all of the exposed areas. These lichens are given a home on the Palo Santo tree and use the tree for their survival.
The Saddleback Tortoises and Prickly Pear Trees of the island have a constant competition to outgrow each other. The Saddleback tortoises have much longer necks than their domed shelled relatives. These long necks allow the tortoises to reach up to the cactuses to eat them for food. The Prickly Pear Tree responds to the tortoises by growing taller. These cactuses will have a better chance of success at surviving if they are not eaten by the tortoises. The tortoises with the longer necks will be more likely to survive and reproduce with longer neck and the respond the prickly pear trees will continue to grow taller in response.
The sea birds interact with each other on an everyday basis and the marine world to provide them with food. The Frigate birds of the Galapagos Islands are perfectly designed scavengers of the Galapagos Islands. They will fish for themselves in the islands when necessary, but will also rely on the other sea birds to catch the fish and do the majority of the work. When a booby or tropicbird has caught a fish, the frigate birds will pluck and bite at these birds causing them to drop their catch. The frigate birds are able to bully the other birds with their superior size and numbers. The frigate birds will also take advantage of the crustaceans and baby reptiles that make their homes on the beaches and rocks along the shore. Frigate birds will circle around sea turtle nests waiting for the babies to hatch in order to swoop in for a very easy meal. The frigate birds are one of the most versatile birds in the Galapagos eating and interacting with nearly all the other creatures around them in order to survive. The interactions of the frigate birds are one of the many species that interact with one another and it is these unique and important interactions that necessitatesis a conservation effort in the Galapagos Islands in order to preserve and protect these species.
The Galapagos Archipelago faces a unique challenge of protecting the local wildlife and environment while maintaining an ecotourism industry and a growing population. The national park service and local population have begun adapting conservation efforts to protect and restore the unique diversity of life on the islands. The important goal of conservation for the Charles Darwin Research center is the breeding and protection of the Land Tortoises and Land Iguanas. These animals were harmed by introduced species such as goats which competed with these animals for the same food source, the goat population which grew rapidly and devastated the local landscape as they increased their population. However, with a successful hunting program the goats have been eliminated from all the islands. This has allowed for breeding programs to begin to introduce and raise the baby tortoises and iguanas with the knowledge that they will not be competed against in the wild. The centers on Isabella and Santa Cruz Islands collect the eggs of these reptiles and keep them incubated to maintain a constant temperature. When the babies are born the center places them in pens with other young and feeds them a controlled diet. This process of raising the turtles in such pens ensures that they are properly fed and kept out of the reach of harms way. Once the reptiles have grown to an acceptable size they can be reintroduced to their natural homes without worry of introduced competition thanks to the removal of introduced species and they will be grown up enough to survive their natural competition to help ensure their survival.
The government has responded to the increased tourism industry by limiting the number of tourists allowed per year and maintaining a well controlled customs area. The government of Ecuador maintains a separate system of customs for the Galapagos to ensure that the islands specific protections are met. The shipments of the items sent to the Galapagos are carefully controlled to ensure no harmful products are introduced. The shipments and cargo sent to the Galapagos are searched and controlled to try and prevent stowaways to the Galapagos such as cats from entering the islands and disturbing the ecosystem. The government controls the immigration and number of tourists to the islands to help maintain some stability in the islands. If the Ecuadorian government allowed unlimited immigration and tourists the islands would develop at a rapid pace and the islands would become overwhelmed with construction and development. The practice of limiting the products and people to the islands help to protect the islands from too much development.
Another goal of conservation of the Galapagos is to protect the marine life of these islands from overfishing. The marine life of the Galapagos is extremely diverse and the Ecuadorian government has made the Galapagos Archipelago a protected marine reserve. When arriving on the islands all visitors must pay a national tax to enter the Galapagos. A portion of this tax goes to protecting and patrolling the marine reserve. These patrols help to enforce the marine reserve by preventing fisherman from crossing the border and pillaging these delicate seas. The Ecuadorian government limits the time and species that the local fishing industry may fish. These fishermen have been encouraged to switch to the ecotourism industry and as this industry continues to grow the fishing industry will continue to be discouraged from fishing. The marine reserve of the Galapagos Islands helps to protect the marine life of the Archipelago. The conservation efforts of the Galapagos are in place to help protect the islands and restore them to their untouched tranquility, but are not intended to hurt the unique experience a visitor may find on these islands.
The Galapagos Island tour is a “life changing experience” for visitors to the islands. The islands allow any individual to connect the dots and concepts that are taught in geology and biology classes. The concepts of evolution are clearly displayed and easy to grasp in the islands. While staring at the Santa Fe Land Iguana and, my mind just clicked and saw how the little changes impact each other and how the world really does change over time. In this one moment the world came together in my mind and how humans change the world from the wonder that is that island to the world I live in today.
The most important part of the Galapagos trip is the controlling influence that humans will have on the world around them. I have never been so close to animals in the wild as I have on this trip. These animals do not run away from humans in fear, but instead simply acknowledge your presence and go on with their business. When I returned and walked around my home community it was strange to the birds that fly away from a human being near them. This simple change was striking just to be reminded how with time humans can create fear in the creatures around them and with each other. The Galapagos experience also showed the destructiveness that humans bring with them. When I first arrived on San Cristobal Island I was shocked to see the mining of the cinder cone and the destructive effects that this small mining operation does to the world around it. This small mining operation removed the amazing view of the area and destroyed the environment around it. No one will ever know what lava lizard or finch made its home at that spot. With that mindset it is amazing to think of what the world would have looked like and how the animals in my community would have looked without human interference. As a individual I am now aware just how much human presence will affect the world around it and that the closeness that I experienced with the Galapagos wildlife I will never be able to experience in the rest of the world due to the actions of humans for thousands of years.
The Galapagos Islands are a wonderful place that showcase the interactions that the living and non-living world have with each other and just how connected the world is. The geology and biology of these islands truly live up to the name the enchanted islands. The importance of these islands is why a conservation effort is necessary for the islands so that every individual on the island may take away how connected everything is and just what makes these islands so enchanting.