A slight tangent

Although we created this blog to share our cruise experience, we did run across this article today in the Journal News that we want to share with you.

The article documents two families that have set up charities to provide help for the people of Ecuador: The Road Less Traveled and Project Ecuador.

We spent two days touring in Ecuador as well as seven days on the Xpedition. We found the people of Ecuador to be warm, open and hospitable. We traveled out of Quito into the Andes and met some of the local people in Mindo. Here is where we had lunch:


What you don't see is the roads are not paved and there are chickens crossing almost everywhere (we don't know why).

We are not recommending either one of these groups but we do like the idea of contributing to an organization that channels our money directly to the people we want to help. We're sure there are many other deserving and legitimate opportunities to help the people of Ecuador and the billions of other people around the world that need help. Right now, these have immediate personal meaning for us.

New York Times

We just discovered that while we were away, the New York Times published the following article. It describes very succinctly the challenge of the Galapagos Islands -- preservation vs. tourism. Luckily, most of the tourists are people who want to preserve the islands. Unfortunately, there may be be too many of them.

The article also provides a link to much more about the islands including travel information.

Watch this space. More videos and photos are on the way -- but there is nothing like the real thing.

Give credit where credit is due

The pictures you see in this blog come from several sources.

The naturalists recorded each excursion, then treated us to an outstanding presentation the last night of the cruise. They also gave us a CD with the presentation and many other excellent photos -- some of what you see comes from them.
Our good friends, Harvey and Marie Sugar joined us on our adventure. Many of the photos are from their collection.

As you can see, Harvey had an assistant.

I won't identify the source of each picture, but my thanks to Harvey, Marie and the crew of the Xpedition.

Landscape

So much for animals -- for now. A little about the islands themselves.

(The following picture was copied from JohnCARV's site on flickr. Thanks Jonathan.)


What makes the Galapagos so interesting for naturalists like Charles Darwin?

The islands originate over a hot spot between two tectonic plates. Volcanic activity above the hot spot create an island then the movement of the plates cause the newly (in millions of years) formed island to drift to the south east. So, over time, islands are dragged away from their origin and volcanic activity ceases. Islands in the lower right of the picture are the older siblings of the islands in the upper left.

Although this movement happens in geologic time, it is a laboratory for development of species. Older islands have experienced millions of years of evolution while north western neighbors are newly formed and support a different selection of species even if they are from the same animal family. Thus, we can see, effectively side by side, the driving force in survival of the fittest.

Not only do the islands provide a wonder of animal and plant life but the most incredible terrain. 'A picture is worth a thousand words' ... an understatement in this case. At this point, I'll let the pictures speak for themselves.

Family Feud

One of the things you become accustomed to is having animals around you at all times. They are not tame but they do not fear humans. You're just another being to them. An you are taught to stay out of their way.

The videos you are about to see are from our departure. All the passengers are 'zodiaced' to the peir where we board buses to the airport. It's not just our ship but there are passengers from another ship intermixed with us. We are now all trained wildlife observers. Of course, the wildlife has moved into town.

One distinction I never appreciated was the difference between sea lions and seals. Galapagos has sea lions -- with some fur seals. What you are about to witness are sea lions -- they are everywhere.

When we arrived in Galapagos and were transported from the airport to the wharf to board our ship, we passed several sea lions basking on the benches. We had not time to observe. However, during our departure, not only were we smarter but we had time to watch what was probably a daily ritual.

Enjoy




I'm sure this scene was repeated many millions of time just before the Superbowl game.

But the story is not over. Junior is coming.



Although I didn't catch it on video -- we were boarding the bus -- Junior climbed up with mom and settled in his nap. No harm done.

The great realization, as you are leaving, is that these events are everyday occurrences in the Galapagos. That's why it is like no place else on earth and needs to be preserved. It is also why this unique location is such an educational opportunity. The catch 22 is that to educated more you potentially destroy the lesson.

What more can I say. Sign up before it's too late.

Charles Darwin Foundation

There are two efforts to preserve tortoises in Galapagos. The first is protecting them on the 'open range.' The key there is eliminating the introduced competitors, namely goats. The second is to keep individuals in captivity. Typically, this consists of adults, which the curators hope will breed. Hatchlings can be raised and released.

Naturalists collect eggs from nests, hatch and raise the individuals until they can fend for themselves. As you can imagine, infant tortoises have very few defenses. Predatory birds and other natural enemies can easily decimate the dwindling population. By raising babies until they are (relatively) safe, the islands have a chance to restore the population (truly long range planning). This is one of the many missions of the Darwin Foundation.

In this video, you will see an enclosure with two male tortoises who were rescued from the wild. You will hear our naturalist describing the daily activity of a typical free range tortoise. They move mostly at night when it is cool and can travel up to five kilometers.

In the previous post, you saw tortoises in a preserve, which is up in the hills. They travel away from that area down the hills toward the lower areas to breed and lay their eggs. This is where the naturalists from the Darwin Foundation harvest the eggs.

In the beginning of the video, notice the second tortoise in the background. He will appear again near the end. Look at the shell of this second tortoise carefully.

If you noticed, there were three holes in the second tortoise's shell. These holes were created by a drunken sailor shooting this animal more that 30 years ago. The slugs are still lodged inside.


This another resident at the center. Notice the front of the shell above the neck -- how high it is. This is a perfect example of how species adapt to their environment. Unlike the other tortoises (above) who eat vegetation on the ground, this tortoise must reach up and eat from bushes and trees. Thus the front of the shell is elongated and raised. It is these types of differences that inspired Charles Darwin to formulate his Origin of Species.

After eggs are hatches, the babies are isolated in their own facilities. As they grow, they are moved to more natural settings until they are ready to release.

Here you can see the perils for any tortoise even without predators and competitors.

Last, but not least, is Lonesome George. This is the last known specimen of one species of Galapagos tortoise. There is a global effort to find a mate for George (eHarmony for reptiles). Many tortoises were carried off to zoos around the world and since they live for over a hundred years, it may be that Georges true love is out there waiting to be found. Or, explorers may find a mate hidden somewhere in the islands. As our guide explained, naturalists find new species every year. Finally, there is the possibility of cloning. Since George probably has another 50 years, there's time. He'll just have to talk to himself.











Think about it -- the world oil supply will expire before George does. So who's the survivor in this picture?

The Galapagos Tortoise

Any discussion of Galapagos should to start with the tortoise.

Celebrity Xpedition, I think on purpose, saves these excursions until the last day. One option is to visit a tortoise preservation farm and the other is the Darwin center. These pictures are from the farm.

These creatures are scattered around the landscape like cows on a dairy farm. To give you an idea of their size, here are two daring explorers risking their lives in the open field with these wild unrestricted beasts.





They are vegetarians eating the local plants. Like bovines (cows for city folk), there are many tortoise plops scattered around the open field. One must walk looking down to avoid the unfortunate interaction -- especially with open sandals.

Historically, the Galapagos was a stopping point for sailing ships for the last several centuries. Although it was not a watering stop, the sailors would harvest tortoises to provision their ships with meat. In addition, the ship would release goats. Ferrel goats breed faster than the natural tortoises and ate all the good stuff. The goats were winning and the tortoises became endangered.

The park now has a program to eradicate the goats including shooting them from helicopters. Sorry, goat lovers.

Don't expect to see massive herds of tortoises charging over the horizon -- it takes 25 years before a new borne tortoise is ready to mate -- but they live for over 100 years. The Darwin center is dedicated to preserving newborns and repopulating the islands. More on this in another post.

Introduction

Thanks Liz and Jay, you've inspired me to give this a try.

What better way to share our experience.

Galapagos is definitely a unique place. As you will see, you walk among the animals because for millions of years there were no humans for them to fear, so they accept you in a way unlike any other place on earth. This is a problem as the arrival of people have come close to destroying this pristine environment and wiping out some unique species. More on this later.

Galapagos is a group of volcanic islands 600 miles west of South American on the equator. I have to hand it to the Ecuador for preserving this natural habitat.

What will follow is Sandy's and my experience embellished with some of our many photos and a few videos. I hope you enjoy the show and may be inspired to visit yourself. Don't wait too long -- seating is limited.