Charles Darwin Center

Giant Tortoise Land Iguana

Today we began the day walking to the Charles Darwin Research Center, located here on Santa
Cruz Island, the most populated island on the archipelago. Only 3% of the land here is set aside for human settlement. The other 97% of the island lands are protected. Some of the islands are not inhabited at all. Santa Cruz has seen a huge population growth in the last 20 years. This has put a strain on the resources available: water, electricity, and money for education and health care. With more people living on the island, you can imagine the increase in trash production. The island, like San Christobal has a recycling center that we will visit tomorrow. Still, not all materials are recyclable, so it does create a problem for the people and the environment.

Another problem the islands face are invasive species, as I have mentioned in earlier entries. This morning we met Felipe Cruz, the Director of Technical Assistance of the Charles Darwin Center who is working to decrease the amount of invasive species. (This center is named after a famous scientist who visited the islands in the 1800s. What Darwin saw helped him to develop his theories about adaptations in animals). The center was created for scientists to study the plants and animals that live in the islands, to educate people about them and to promote conservation (protect them). This morning, Mr. Cruz gave us a talk about the eradication (elimination) of goats on Isabella and Santiago Islands. The goats were introduced by early settlers and their population grew exponentially because they have no predators. They eat all of the vegetation on the islands, leaving nothing for the endemic (native) species to live. One of the most affected species is the giant tortoise. The center also breeds the 13 different kinds of tortoises that live on the islands.

Later we visited an organization called FUNDAR that was created to help the people of the Galapagos live sustainably, meaning living in harmony with the environment (kind of like the Tainos lived). They educate people how to use resources in a way that they can have enough for everyone, for example how to collect rain for drinking and irrigation water, how to grow crops organically (using tortoise poop as fertilizer!), how to compost, and the importance of reforestation. Today I planted a scalesia tree, which is related to the daisy. This species shows more adaptation than Darwin’s finches. Since it arrived in the islands, it has evolved into 16 different species. This means that they can adapt to different climates, elevation, etc. Some can grow to the size of trees! These trees are important for many reasons, including growing shade-grown coffee, which doesn’t require pesticides because the trees attract birds that eat the insects that feed on the plants.

As you know trees are also important for combating climate change because as they grow to maturity, they absorb excess carbon dioxide. I attended a lecture about climate change this evening, and I was reminded about all the things we can do to help combat climate change such as using energy efficient appliances and light bulbs and driving less. Saving energy can also save us money: I learned that LCD and plasma televisions use huge amounts of electricity. I would love to see energy efficient lighting at our new school, as well as reminding people to use these in their homes.I have learned so much on this trip and I have much more to share when I get home. I miss you all!

Presenting with Galapagueño Teachers

The girls´dresses have pictures of endemic animals painted on them.

All weekend we have been meeting with teachers from the Galapagos to create a presentation about how we teach our students about the environment. A theme that ran through every presentation is that teachers need to help our students develop the tools they need to help protect it, since you are our future and we need to protect the environment in order to live. After our presentations, local high school students presented traditional Ecuadorian dance and music. At one point, I got pulled in by one of the dancers and invited to join the dance. I’m sure you would have been amused by my two left feet! I feel incredibly fortunate to have met teachers from Ecuador and to learn about the issues that they face and the solutions they are using. I have learned a lot about recycling and I am eager to share what I have learned with you.

To the right is a mural painted by a high school student from Santa Cruz. The volcano represents the birth of these islands, the globe represents not only the Galapagos but the whole world which is in our hands. One quote I keep hearing is Ïf we can save the Galapagos, we can save our planet.¨

Snorkeling off Coast of Isabella Island

Photo by Per-Gunnar Ostby
Golden Rays (photo by Jeff Waugh)

Guess what I saw today? A Galapagos penguin! They are the third smallest penguin in the world and they live further north than any other penguin. They are considered tropical penguins because of the fact that they live near the equator; however, because of the cold water currents that flow through here (Humbolt, Cromwell) the waters are very chilly. I had to wear a wetsuit just to stay warm enough for our 45 minute snorkel. These penguins do have to regulate their temperature during warmer months. The strong sun is the main problem for the penguins in the Galapagos Islands, so they need to regulate their body temperatures. They do this by holding their wings away from the body, allowing air to reach less feathered parts, shading feet from the sun, and finally by swimming in cool water. While snorkeling, I also saw five or six sea turtles, a school of golden rays, puffer fish, as well as many other fish whose names I don’t know yet. One school of fish looked like electric sparks in the water, though it was just the sunlight reflecting off their scales.

On the way back to the ship, we saw fur seals, the only other marine mammal found in the Galapagos. They have faces that look like bears and their call is much more subdued compared to the sea-lions’ cough-hurl-growl sound that is ubiquitous (you can hear it everywhere) on these islands!

Throughout the cruise, when we were not watching wildlife, we teachers from the United States have been meeting with Galapagueño teachers to design plans on how we can better teach our students about environmental issues. We will present to each other tomorrow afternoon. I'll let you know how it goes.

Fernandina Island

This is a flamingo I saw yesterday.

Wow! We woke up early this morning to see whales in the Bolivar channel, which runs between Fernandina and Isabella islands. We saw a Bryde's whale . But the best was to come on our hike to Fernandina Island, which is the youngest island in the archipelago. It sits right on the hotspot, so its main volcano El Cumbre is active. It last erupted in 2005. There are active volcanoes on Isabella, too. We will visit the coast of Isabella afternoon. Upon arriving on Fernandina, we saw a Galapagos penguin swimming near the shore! Unfortunately, it was too quick for me, so I couldn't snap a picture. Walking up the path, we saw hundreds of marine iguanas basking in the sun, some heading down to the water to feed. These reptiles have adapted to be under water for long periods to feed on underwater algae. They have special glands to release all the salt they absorb from the ocean. They also have a flatter snout to help them feed more easily (other lizards and iguanas here have pointed snouts) We also saw more sea lions (they are everywhere!) We saw some flightless cormorants, the only cormorants in the world who don't fly. They have evolved this way because there was so much food available in the area, there was no need to fly to obtain food. They get around by hopping and swimming. We also saw a courtship ritual between two cormorants. I have video to share when I have better Internet service. We also saw lava cactus, one of the first colonizing plants. They grow in the volcanic rock. There roots break up the rock, eventually providinga place for other plants to grow. Two types of lava are on this island: a'a (which translates as pain, since it is sharp and can cut through the sole of a shoe) and pahoehoe (or ropelike) lava. We also saw sea turtles, a Galapagos hawk, lava lizards, and some Sally Lightfoot crabs. This afternoon we have another deep sea snorkel. I hope to see more penguins and to get to swim with marine iguanas. We'll see!

Española and Floreana Islands

This morning, we headed to Española Island, the oldest island in archipelago (which means chain of islands) Eighty percent of the endemic (native) species of the Galapagos live here. I got
to see more sea lions (in fact some where on the path so we had to scoot

Nazca Boobies /Juvenile Waved Albatross

around them), marine iguanas, Galapagos hawks, blue-footed boobies, Nazca boobies (a subspecies of the Masked Booby, which lives on the mainland of Ecuador), and the waved albatross.

To learn about why the waved albatross is on the critically endangered list, click here.

This afternoon, we went on a deep water snorkel, where we got to see parrot fish, angel fish, starfish, a swimming sea lion, many rays and a white tipped reef shark! After snorkeling, we quickly changed and headed for Floreana island, where we saw flamingos! We also got to see a pacific green turtle exiting the sea.
Blue-footed booby


Marine Iguana

Floreana is inhabited, and although we did not see the inhabited side of the island, we could see the impacts of the invasive species introduced there. Invasive means that the species are not native and that they take over habitats of other plants or animals or that they prey on animals. On some of these islands, there are stray cats and dogs, horses, donkeys, cows, goats, rats, and wild pigs that are invasive. These are dangerous to the ecosystem. Goats eat so much vegetation that there is nothing left for the giant tortoises. Rats eat tortoise eggs (as I mentioned earlier). Cats and dogs prey on endemic animals as well. Today we saw a penguin corpse that our guide thought had been attacked by a cat. Although invasive species are not a major problem in Massachusetts, we need to think about how the choices we make, even as simple as the pets we keep, can impact the environment both negatively or positively.

Cerro Brujo

Photo by Sandy Charles

Today we boarded the M/V Santa Cruz, a cruise ship that will take us to see other islands. Our first stop was Cerro Burjo, or Wizards Hill (this keyboard is set up for Spanish, and I cant figure out how to type the apostrophe). We walked along the beach, saw a marine iguana (picture to come), then snorkeled a bit. I saw a few spotted eagle rays , an angel king fish, and some parrot fish. In a few minutes, we are heading over to Espanola island, then later Floreana Island. I will let you know what I see!

Photo from http://carlaperson.files.wordpress.com/2008/02/spotted-eagle-ray-xx.jpg

School Visits - Que Chevere! (How Cool!)

Feliz Dia de Accion de Gracias! Happy Thanksgiving. I miss you all very much but I am also very thankful to have had this opportunity. Today I visited a 6^th grade classroom at Liceo Naval School. The students welcomed me and asked me questions about life in the United States. I told them about how 7^th graders at Young Achievers maintain our recycling program. I asked them what they would tell my students to do to help the environment. They said: don’t throw trash in the ocean, recycle, protect animals, plant trees, and don’t introduce invasive species into the ecosystem. These kids know how important it is to protect the environment, because they know how fragile their island habitat is, and how quickly it can be destroyed if they don’t take care of it. Of course, there are things we can do at home that will help in the Galapagos. I know none of you throw trash into the ocean, but did you know that litter in the streets in Boston often ends up in the storm drains (the rectangular openings under the sidewalks)? Normally, this goes to sewage treatment plants, but if there is a lot of water, such as in a rainstorm, some of this gets dumped directly into the Charles River. As if that isn’t bad enough, the Charles spills out into the ocean, and so does the trash. This trash gets carried around in ocean currents and forms giant trash islands in the sea. When sea birds eat this trash, they cannot digest it or remove it from their bodies, so they can die of starvation. (Click here for more information of this). So if you see litter on the street, put it in a trashcan! Or better yet, if it can be recycled, put it in a recycling bin.

Galapagos has a trash problem, too, but they have a major recycling programs on some of the islands. I was hoping to visit the center on San Christobal, but I didn’t think I would have the opportunity. However, after class was finished at Liceo Naval, some of the students said, “We’re going on a field trip to the Recycling Center. You should come!” So I hopped in their van and traveled with them to the center, or Gestión de Lixiviados. In San Christobal, they recycle organic materials (like food scraps and vegetation) to make compost (which they use in their gardens), as well as glass, plastic, cardboard, and paper. On the island, they grind the glass to use in making bricks. The rest is compacted and shipped to the mainland. It’s important for Galapagaens to recycle, because there is no place to put trash. Even if there were space, the toxins that leach out of the trash would be harmful to such a fragile ecosystem. Instead, they burn their trash, which obviously releases pollution into the environment. The only solution is to use less. San Christobal is working to educate tourists who visit the island to recycle as well. I know 7^th graders care about recycling enough to educate younger students.

I encourage you to educate as many people as you can about why it is so important not only for the health of places like the Galapagos, but the health of our world.

p.s. Amariliz it´s a real alligator, though I didn´t take the picture. I forgot to cite it, but it´s from National Geographic. I took all the other non-captioned pictures. This is a picture of a sea lion pup. He´s about 2 and a half feet long.