12 Curious Facts you need to know

The Galapagos Islands are known around the world due to their great biodiversity and also for being the site from which Charles Darwin developed the evolution theory. Below, we want to show you 12 curious facts that you may not know about the Enchanted Islands.

1.

The official name of the Galapagos Islands is: “Archipielago de Colon”

2.

Enchanted Islands? Which appear the first time in The Enchanted Islands in 1589, because the navigators called them like that referring to them as "appearing and disappearing", the truth was that it was an effect caused by the strong sea currents which made the navigation difficult and the currents also prevented access at certain times of the year. Nowadays, they are still known and called the "Enchanted Islands”, but now based on their great biodiversity of flora and fauna.

3.

Why the name, Galapagos? The navigators were who changed the name to The Galapagos Islands, due to the giant tortoises that live in the archipelago. The word “Galapagos” means tortoise.

4.

Floreana Island is named after Juan Jose Flores, who was the first president of Ecuador’s Republic, during his government he took the position of the archipelago and named the island Floreana.

5.

Did you know that Floreana island beach (Cormorant Point) has greenish sand? This peculiar color comes from the olivine crystals that have separated from the magma of the volcano’s cone.

6.

The Galapagos marine iguana is a unique species (reptile) in the world, that has adapted to life underwater and feeds on small underwater creatures; they are usually black to soak up the sun. Those beautiful creatures also change their colors to bright shades of green, turquoise, red, and orange during the mating season from December to March.

7.

The Galapagos Islands have 21 volcanoes (13 active and 8 inactive or extinct). Since Charles Darwin’s visit in 1835, there have been recorded 60 volcanic eruptions.

8.

The Galapagos Islands were part of World War II the United States Government 1942 built a military base to protect the Panama Canal through planned air patrols from the Galapagos.

9.

What time zone Galapagos use? The local time in Galapagos is GMT - Greenwich Mean Time -6 (one hour earlier than in land Ecuador)

10.

Galapagos is moving constantly. One of the strangest facts about the Galapagos Islands is that despite its location at the northern tip of the Nazca plaque, the archipelago is moving constantly eastward.

11.

An Irishman was the first inhabitant of the Islands. In 1807, an Irish sailor named Patrick Watkins crashed his ship on the Galapagos Islands by accident, afterwards, he stayed living on the Islands for 8 years.

12.

Did you know that the Galapagos Giant tortoise is one of the longest animals known? That is right! There are giant tortoises with an average age of over 150 years, they are vegetarian, feeding on cacti, grass, leaves, and berries and they can be able to survive for months without food or water. Because these tortoises have suffered persecution and extermination by man is hands, their great capacity to live for many months without food and water neither. They are considered a source of fresh food and easy to keep on boats.

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