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The Galápagos or Galapagos Islands are named for their giant tortoises, [3] which were more plentiful at the time of their discovery. The Spanish word galápago derives from a pre-Roman Iberian word meaning "turtle", the meaning it still has in most dialects.
This is a list of animals that live in the Galápagos Islands. The fauna of the Galápagos Islands include a total of 9,000 confirmed species. Of them, none have been introduced by humans, and seventeen are endemic. [citation needed] Due to amphibians intolerance of saltwater, no amphibians naturally occur on the Galapagos Islands.
The Galápagos Islands are home to a remarkable number of endemic species. The stark rocky islands (many with few plants) made it necessary for many species to adapt to survive and by doing so evolved into new species. It was after visiting the Galápagos and studying the wildlife that a young Charles Darwin developed his theory of evolution. [2]
The Galápagos penguin (Spheniscus mendiculus) is a penguin endemic to the Galápagos Islands of Ecuador.It is the only penguin found north of the equator. [4] Most inhabit Fernandina Island and the west coast of Isabela Island. [5]
The islands were described as "the Galopegos Insulae" (Turtle Island). The Galapagos were used by pirates hideout in English as trips to plunder Spanish galleons carrying gold and silver from America to Spain. The first known pirate to visit the islands was Richard Hawkins, in 1593. From then until 1816 many pirates came to the archipelago.
Isabela Island (Spanish: Isla Isabela) is the largest of the Galápagos Islands, with an area of 4,586 km 2 (1,771 sq mi) and a length of 100 km (62 mi). By itself, it is larger than all the other islands in the chain combined, and it has a little under 2,000 permanent inhabitants. The island straddles the equator.
A UNESCO mission arrived in Galapagos on 29 April to study the progress made since 2007. A favorite of visitors to the Galapagos is Tortuga Bay, located on the Santa Cruz Island, about a 20-minute walk from the main water taxi dock in Puerto Ayora. The walking path is 1.55 miles (2,490 m) and is open from six in the morning to six in the evening.
Rocky shores and marine lagoons on islands throughout [8] LC: Considered by some authorities (including BirdLife International and the American Ornithological Society) to be a subspecies of the striated heron [9] [10] 7 Galápagos hawk: Buteo galapagoensis: All habitats throughout the islands, except on Genovesa, San Cristóbal, and Floreana ...