Galapagos Islands: Major world hub for scientific research

Ecuador made a part of the Galapagos a wildlife sanctuary in 1935, and the sanctuary became the Galapagos National Park in 1959.

The Galapagos Islands an archipelago of volcanic islands part of the Republic of Ecuador, distributed on either side of the Equator in the Pacific Ocean surrounding the centre of the Western Hemisphere.

The island inspired Charles Darwin’s Theory of evolution and was his field of study. The Islands and their surrounding waters form the Galapagos Province of Ecuador, the Galapagos National Park, and the Galapagos Marine Reserve.

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Ecuador made a part of the Galapagos a wildlife sanctuary in 1935, and the sanctuary became the Galapagos National Park in 1959. In 1978, the islands became UNESCO’s first World Heritage Site. The Galapagos Islands host a wide array of aquatic wildlife, including marine iguanas, fur seals, and waved albatrosses.

Biosphere reserve since 1984

Area: 693,700 hectares

Population: 33,042 inhabitants

(2020, projections)

Consists of 7 major islands,

14 smaller islands, 64 islets

and 136 rocks

Key events

16th to 19th centuries

Strategic base for pirates and whalers

1832- Official incorporation of the archipelago to Ecuador

1835- Charles Darwin visits Galapagos aboard the Beagle

1942-1947- Home to US military bases during World War II

1959- Creation of the Galapagos National Park

1970- Start of tourism to the archipelago

% of species found only in Galapagos

Reptiles 86%

Plants 32%

Mammals 27%

Terrestrial birds 25%

Notable native species

– Giant tortoise (Chelonoidis vandenburghi)

One of the longest-living vertebrates

– Marine iguana (Amblyrhynchus cristatus)

Can live up to 60 years

– Galapagos sea lion (Zalophus wollebaeki)

Only inhabits the islands

– Scalloped hammerhead (Sphyrna lewini)

Size up to 4.3 metre

– Galapagos penguin (Spheniscus mendiculus)

Penguin unique to the tropics

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