Weber State College Comment, June 1986, page 7 Marine Iguana on Isla Santa Cruz. Tortoise at Darwin Station (center right). ee ee ee Boobie on its nest. ~~ Active volcano outside Pucon in Chile’s lake district. . | known, is a group of islands and islets, all of volcanic origin. There are 13 major islands, six minor ones and many tiny islets. A curious interaction of cold ocean currents from the south and warm currents from the east, varying elevation of the islands and their location on the equator create a variety of habitats. Coastal lowland areas of most of the islands tists from Ecuador, Peru, France, Belgium, England and the U.S. After leaving the Station, I joined one of the several commercial tours which transport people between the islands primarily to see the wildlife. All tours there are required to provide naturalist-guides. are deserts. Higher elevations of some of the extinct These guides are young, college graduates from many countries trained by the Darwin Station. In volcanoes trap more moisture and have lush forests. four days I was able to visit eight islands and see a Even though discovered in 1535, the remote location and lack of fresh water discouraged human inhabitation. Today, only 10,000 or so people live there in a few small villages. wide variety (but not all) of the wildlife. A visitor is immediately struck by the tameness of most of the reptiles, birds and mammals. Being so Ecuador legitimized the Galapagos’ uniqueness in large, dangerous enemies. So, when humans arrived 1959 by declaring them a national park. Soon after in 1962 the Charles Darwin Research Station was founded on Isla Santa Cruz to provide a base of study for scientists from all over the world. This station also plays a major role in the conservation of the isolated, animals there had no history of contact with they were not, This tameness species before the Ecuadoran and still are not recognized as a threat. had a detrimental impact on many complete protection was afforded by government. some islands has been ravaged, particularly by goats, thus destroying food and cover for many native species. Dogs, cats and rats kill wildlife outright. Even the giant tortoises are affected because their eggs and young are eaten by these predators. My stay there was too brief—there is too much to see in a short time. However, it was an extremely valuable experience for a zoologist—especially a teacher of zoology—to see the Galapagos and its wildlife firsthand. All in all, the experiences provided by the National Science Foundation grant have been extremely beneficial. Not only was becoming acquainted with other cultures worthwhile, but seeing other ecosystems, new wildlife and discussing these things with zoologists from other countries was very stimulating. An added benefit of the success of this project was that Dr. Jaksic and I have obtained a se- of cond grant under this same program. This one will seabirds and giant tortoises for food. A greater threat unique Galapagos fauna and flora. My first two days in the Galapagos were spent at . to wildlife at present and probably in the future is from animals introduced by humans. Wild dogs, the Darwin Station observing what was happening there and discussing the possibility for future cats, goats, pigs and burros as well as rats are found on many of the islands. These were all brought research. The Darwin Station truly is an internaby people on purpose of accidentally. Vegetation on tional gathering place. In my brief stay, I met scien- fund a meeting between eight North American and eight South American ecologists in Santiago in 1986. The purpose of this meeting is to discuss methods and similarities of results between ecological research in Sailors and early settlers killed large numbers North and South America and to stimulate further collaboration between the two continents.