We are on Santa Cruz Island and the main town here is Puerto Ayora. Santa Cruz is the second largest island in the Galapagos and it has the largest human settlement as well as the headquarters of the Galapagos National Park Service and the Charles Darwin Research Station.
In the morning we visited the Charles Darwin Research Station. Here we found the iconic Galapagos giant tortoises. We learned about the conservation programs regarding their endangered species status. There are more than seven hundred tortoises as part of the captive breeding program, some of them are adults and others are young individuals.
Puerto Ayora is a town with more than ten thousand inhabitants and the growth of the economy is driven by the tourism industry. Here, the locals have primary schools, high schools and universities for their education. It is a very nice town and it was a great experience to spend some time here while we visited this island.
In the afternoon we explored the highlands of Santa Cruz. This region is green throughout the year and it is home to many of the endemic species that inhabit the Galapagos. As we explored the forest and grasslands we spotted several types of Darwin’s finches, mocking birds, pintail ducks and giant tortoises.
Santa Cruz is an amazing place. It is a large island with many attractions for the visitor and is home to a great number of the iconic species that make this archipelago unique. Also this island adds a lot of scientific value to our expedition due to the Charles Darwin Research Station.
