Española Island
The Galápagos Archipelago. A magical place, well deserving of its earlier name: the Enchanted Islands. A place where species of plants and animals arrived and survived against all odds; to fill vacant niches and depart in the most unexpected ways from the parent stock. A place where flightless cormorants live side by side with marine iguanas, giant tortoises graze the pastures in lieu of cattle and tiny penguins flit among the coral heads.
Once established here, the new inhabitants of these isolated peaks, surrounded by miles of ocean in every direction, were able to carve out an existence for themselves by adapting to their new conditions until reaching a perfect equilibrium with their strange surroundings. One of the outstanding characteristics of these surroundings was a lack of large, efficient mammalian predators that never made the trans-oceanic crossing. Over time, the inhabitants of the Galápagos gradually lost all sense of fear and self-preservation towards possible predators – they became what is charmingly known as “ecologically naïve.”
This innocence is also apparent in their reaction to our presence in their world: complete and utter indifference or, at the most, mild curiosity. Here we all share this harsh, unforgiving land as equals, and although creatures here are unaware of just how special this is, it is absolutely mind-blowing for the visitor.
We are captivated by the strange innocence of Galápagos animals time and time again during our expedition, apparent on all islands we visit, but on Española Island it is almost overwhelming. One can’t help but wonder how this time of quiet contemplation and communion with another living creature on the long white beach of Gardner Bay will influence and shape the life of a ten-year old child.
The Galápagos Archipelago. A magical place, well deserving of its earlier name: the Enchanted Islands. A place where species of plants and animals arrived and survived against all odds; to fill vacant niches and depart in the most unexpected ways from the parent stock. A place where flightless cormorants live side by side with marine iguanas, giant tortoises graze the pastures in lieu of cattle and tiny penguins flit among the coral heads.
Once established here, the new inhabitants of these isolated peaks, surrounded by miles of ocean in every direction, were able to carve out an existence for themselves by adapting to their new conditions until reaching a perfect equilibrium with their strange surroundings. One of the outstanding characteristics of these surroundings was a lack of large, efficient mammalian predators that never made the trans-oceanic crossing. Over time, the inhabitants of the Galápagos gradually lost all sense of fear and self-preservation towards possible predators – they became what is charmingly known as “ecologically naïve.”
This innocence is also apparent in their reaction to our presence in their world: complete and utter indifference or, at the most, mild curiosity. Here we all share this harsh, unforgiving land as equals, and although creatures here are unaware of just how special this is, it is absolutely mind-blowing for the visitor.
We are captivated by the strange innocence of Galápagos animals time and time again during our expedition, apparent on all islands we visit, but on Española Island it is almost overwhelming. One can’t help but wonder how this time of quiet contemplation and communion with another living creature on the long white beach of Gardner Bay will influence and shape the life of a ten-year old child.
