Santa Cruz Island

The most enigmatic creature in the Galápagos Islands is the giant tortoise. This is the symbol used in conservation of this remote group of volcanic islands in the east Pacific. Today we visited the Charles Darwin Research Station and were impressed by the success of the great efforts dispensed to bring the tortoise dynasty back into normality.

We got to see the last of the Española tortoises. They were taken to the Darwin Station in order to be bred; now, their descendents are repopulating the island. The same happened to other tortoises of other islands and we are repatriating the babies from Santiago, Santa Cruz and Pinzon islands. The story of Lonesome George is somewhat different; he is the last one of his kind; Pinta Island natural environment suffered by the introduction of alien species to such vulnerable place. The Darwin Station is doing a great job by researching and figuring out what they can do in order to preserve such an important place.

After lunch in a restaurant in the highlands, we went to explore the giant tortoise reserve where we found tortoises roaming around on a farm. It is incredible how these creatures survived so many threats, including people. Their migration leaves behind a path that we follow and many generations will follow as well.