Galapagos Islands
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The Galapagos Islands, often called the "laboratory of evolution", are located 600 miles west of mainland Ecuador on one of the most active volcanic regions on earth know as the Nazca Plate, composed almost exclusively of volcanic rock. There are very few places in the world where it is possible to find a wide variety of plants and animals in so many degrees and stages of evolutionary changes as in these islands, being comprehensible the conditions that lead Charles to formulate his evolutionary theory.

It is know these species were present due to their ability to establish themselves after arrival, as well as their capacity to disperse. Within the Galapagos Archipelago there are 13 species evolved from a common ancestor from the mainland nowadays, as well as ancient archeological remains revealing the first the inhabitants of the Ecuadorian coast arrived on "Balsas" and other sailing methods to go farther out to the sea.

Today exploring the islands is not only easy but rewarding for their spectacular paradisiacal views over the Atlantic Ocean. The Ecuadorian government declared the Galapagos Islands a National Park on 1959, simultaneously with the Charles Darwin Foundation for the Galapagos in Belgium marking the centennial celebration of the publication of Darwin's Origin of the Species.

These actions signed the responsibilities of wildlife conservation projects including the eradication and control of introduced species, the protection of endangered populations, and the management of recreation and tourism activities.

Come visit the magical Galapagos Islands