The Galapagos Islands

Galapagos ... an archipelago that has often made me dream since my childhood. But it seemed so far from my route. And then arriving in Ecuador, I realized that I will probably never be as close. And I listened to the advice of a friend of mine: "Do not pass up the opportunity, you will not regret it!”

And actually, I did not regret it. Arrived in Quito, I toured the travel agencies to see available cruises. And I opted for a 8-day tour in the Northern and South-Eastern Islands, the richest in the wildlife that interested me. On the boat, we were 14 passengers and 7 crew members plus the guide. A very good group: long-distance solo travelers and a group of retired Texan birders. A very enriching mix!

The Galapagos Islands are a world in itself. First, its location, right in the Pacific Ocean, more than 1,000 kilometers of coastline. Then, it is one of the few places in the world to have never been attached to a continent. The archipelago is located on a hot spot, volcanoes are erupting regularly, and over 10 million years, have given rise to (and still do) these islands in the middle of the ocean.

It is a universe in itself for its percentage (probably the highest in the world) of endemic species, that is to say that they exist nowhere else. And that is as true for flora and fauna. For some species, one wonders how they could "land" here, especially mammals or reptiles.

But this world is a fragile world. It's a World Heritage Site, but Unesco even registered it on the list of endangered sites between 2007 and 2011. It is a delicate balance that exists on site. The presence of man is not trivial: it is the one who is best placed to make efforts in conservation, but paradoxically human activities also contribute most to the deterioration of areas (pollution, introduced species: cats, dogs, rats, goats, etc.., which are all predators to animals or plants).

Other factors contribute to the fragility of the site. El Niño, a climate phenomenon more or less cyclical, warms Pacific waters and leads to a decrease of fish stocks, staple diet of many other species. Volcanic islands implies that there is little soil for plants to grow. Thus each species, whether plant or animal, has learned over thousands of years to adapt to this environment so special. A single grain of sand in the gears causes disturbances that can move quickly to the extinction of a species.

It's sad but it's not dramatic, say the skeptics. After all, what are the Galapagos compared to the rest of the planet? Well, this is just the perfect sample of what happens in a larger (and scarier) scale on other continents and seas. But political leaders don't seem to really realize that, or at least don't have the political will to act and prevent the consequences (of global warming, among others) before they eventually become irreversible.

On my side too, I wondered about my stay there. For the reasons I have already stated: I took a fly again, I would contribute to human activities that can be harmful to the environment, etc. At the same time, I knew it would feed my thinking on these issues of biodiversity or environmental protection.

And I confess that I really enjoyed myself in the middle of these animals so special, so unusual in our latitudes. This was so fascinating that these animals are fearless. For them, in the worst case, we men are just annoying paparazzi, but never perceived as predators. Birds do not fly at our approach, reptiles do not take refuge under a rock and sea lions continue their nap quietly.

So much for those few unforgettable days. Here are the photos now. And I take this opportunity to thank Ryan for his underwater pictures.