 Winter 2005 |
||
|
|
||
The Galapagos and Beyond: |
 |
|
|
Although I was sorry to miss the conference in Bowling Green last summer, I was spending that time fulfilling the biologist’s dream of visiting the Galapagos. Actually, I made two visits, using the two weeks between island excursions to sample attractions on the Ecuadorian mainland, which made me especially aware of the tremendous potential this country offers biologists even beyond the well-deserved renown of the Galapagos. I was so impressed that I am putting together a return trip to the Galapagos and Ecuador early in the summer of 2006. ABLE members are most welcome to join me, as the schedule will not conflict with the dates of our Conference. Certainly the Galapagos fulfilled all my expectations and more. You really can walk right up to almost all of the wildlife -- with the interesting exception of migratory species that have learned elsewhere to be wary of humans – so the islands are a paradise for naturalists and photographers. Teaching opportunities abound, most obviously for observing evolution, speciation, and biogeography. The best known know case studies in this regard are of course the ubiquitous Darwin’s finches and the Galapagos tortoises (with representatives from the different islands conveniently exhibited together at the Darwin Research Station), but other readily observed examples include mockingbirds, marine iguanas, and plants such as the diverse species of Scalesia, an endemic tree-sized genus in the composite family, and the variety of Opuntia cacti, whose differing morphologies reflect evolution in the presence or absence of grazing by tortoises. Actually seeing the evidence of evolution described in textbooks is only the beginning. With lucky timing, students of animal behavior can observe the mating and nesting rituals of boobies and albatrosses or compare the foraging techniques of various seabirds. For ecologists a number of basic principles are vividly on display, including niche partitioning (e.g., evident in the finches’ beaks or differences in nesting and foraging among sympatric booby species), the role of habitat on community species composition and faunal distribution (why are penguins and flamingos both found in this archipelago?!), and the dramatic effects of climate, especially rainfall and El Niño events, on terrestrial and marine ecosystems. Drawing from both ecology and genetics, yet another dominant theme in the Galapagos is conservation biology. Major goals of the Darwin Research Station are preserving habitat and genetic diversity and managing invasive species. Rats and feral goats are the main animal problems but are infrequently seen by visitors. More evident are invasive plants, such as the cinchona (fever) tree growing at mid elevations on one of the permanently inhabited islands. I had hoped to find this source of quinine growing in the wild while I was on the mainland, but was dismayed to see it instead displacing native inhabitants by its riotous abundance as an introduced species in the Galapagos. As wonderfully exotic as the terrestrial flora and fauna are, the marine life of the Galapagos is at least equally enticing and greatly enhances the overall taxonomic and phylogenetic diversity. My travel companions and I were in the water snorkeling at every opportunity. The most charismatic attractions were sea lions that swam circles around us and sea turtles that paddled gracefully by below. Although the sea was cool enough to make short wet-suits necessary (despite being on the equator, in our summer months the Galapagos are bathed by the cold Humboldt current), everywhere the waters were filled with a dazzling assortment of tropical fish. The cliffs and rocks underwater, looking like ancient ruins, were covered with colorful encrusting sponges, solitary corals, red, brown, and green algae that appeared much more temperate than tropical. The echinoderms were especially impressive – acres of pencil urchins in some locales, as well as long-armed electric blue and compact bright crimson sea stars and the aptly named, palm-sized “chocolate chip” stars.” Clearly the Galapagos are a “must” destination when going to Ecuador, but the mainland also offers considerable advantages for adventurous biology-minded travelers. One plus is a growing interest in eco-tourism by both private entrepreneurs and non-governmental organizations who are eager to attract folks interested in natural history, including students, and who are actively promoting wider travel in the country. These businesses are well positioned to cater readily to a wide variety of interests as Ecuador is remarkably diverse ecologically. Twenty-four different life zones, ranging from alpine páramo to lowland rain forest and tropical beaches, occur in an area about the size of the state of Colorado. The compactness of the country also helps make the diversity readily accessible. From the capital Quito (at a breath-catching 9,350 feet) it is only a short 30-minute flight southwest by jet to Guayaquil on the coast, with access to sandy Pacific beaches, mangrove forests, and dry tropical forest. We made an even shorter 25-minute hop eastward to the Amazon lowlands and the town Coca, a bustling river port on a large tributary of the Amazon but still thousands of miles from the Atlantic. From Coca we traveled two hours down the Napo River by motorized dugout to Yasuní National park, then paddled up a side creek in a smaller, unmotorized dugout to the Napo Wildlife Center, an eco-lodge run by a local non-profit conservation organization. Many visitors come for the incredible bird diversity, but other wildlife including insects, monkeys, caimans, and giant river otters are also attractions. Our guides, one an indigenous naturalist who spoke Quichua and Spanish, the other a Spanish/English speaker, indulged my botanical curiosity, especially by identifying medicinal plants and describing how they were used. Even with their help and the best field guide for the region I was totally overwhelmed and definitely gained a new empathy for my diversity class students in their struggle to learn an array of unfamiliar organisms. Excursions from the lodge provided ample opportunity to observe a variety of tropical lowland plant communities, indigenous agriculture (manioc, bananas, cacao), and patterns of ecological succession following human and natural disturbance. Back in the highlands I also had the privilege of spending nearly a week at the San Jorge EcoLodge in the foothills (11,550 ft!) just 15 minutes outside of Quito. The beautiful and comfortable accommodations (a restored former presidential home and Jesuit retreat)) are adjacent to a 375 acre botanical reserve that preserves a watershed covered with tropical montane forest, which in its high biodiversity makes a dramatic contrast with the impoverished, non-native eucalyptus groves on other nearby slopes. The exceedingly gracious owner and manager of the lodge and preserve, George Cruz, is a skilled birder and knowledgeable amateur botanist who is very interested in welcoming student groups from North America who would like to use the preserve for scientific study. This could start at the basic level of a natural history inventory, which has not yet been done. In many respects, San Jorge would be an especially favorable location to take a student group to. Although the important cultural and historical attractions of colonial Quito are readily available, lodging the students away from the tourist quarter in town allows much greater control over potential problem issues such as drinking. San Jorge also makes a good base for forays outside of Quito. Señor Cruz has excellent contacts to supplement his own guide services for trips to environments as stark and cold as the páramo, accessible by hiking or horseback above the lodge, or as warmly lush as the cloud forests on the Andean slopes below the valley of Quito a few hours drive away. With its tree ferns, amazing variety of hummingbirds, and epiphyte diversity this is the community I absolutely need to spend more time in when I go back. For a trip to Ecuador that includes a trip to the Galapagos, planning needs to start a year ahead because the most favorable way to visit the islands is to charter an entire boat (or two if there is enough interest) for a single pre-formed group. The boats that visit the most interesting places on a 8 day/7 night cruise take 16 passengers. I hope to have more details by the time of the Conference at Virginia Tech this summer. In the meantime, feel free to contact me if you have any comments or questions. Below are some web links to places I have described: http://www.darwinfoundation.org/ http://www.ecoventura.com/ http://www.eco-lodgesanjorge.com/ http://tropicalnaturetravel.com/travel/lodges/napo.html http://www.tandayapa.com/birdtours/Index.htm
|
||
|
|
||