UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Ecuador

UNESCO's Description

Situated in the Pacific Ocean some 1,000 km from the South American continent, these 19 islands and the surrounding marine reserve have been called a unique ‘living museum and showcase of evolution’. Located at the confluence of three ocean currents, the Galápagos are a ‘melting pot’ of marine species. Ongoing seismic and volcanic activity reflects the processes that formed the islands. These processes, together with the extreme isolation of the islands, led to the development of unusual animal life – such as the land iguana, the giant tortoise and the many types of finch – that inspired Charles Darwin’s theory of evolution by natural selection following his visit in 1835.

From the UNESCO World Heritage Centre (CC BY-SA IGO 3.0).

Physical geography

The Galápagos Islands have a land area of about 8,000 square kilometers (3,100 sq mi) spread over 45,000 square kilometers (17,000 sq mi) of ocean. The archipelago is composed of 127 islands, islets, and rocks, of which 19 are large islands with an area exceeding 1 square kilometer (0.39 sq mi). The largest island by far is Isabela. Its area of 4,588 square kilometers (1,771 sq mi) makes up close to three-fifths of the Galápagos's total area. The islands of Santa Cruz (986 square kilometers (381 sq mi)) and Fernandina (642 square kilometers (248 sq mi)) follow. The highest point in the islands is Volcán Wolf on Isabela, reaching an altitude of 1,700 meters (5,600 ft).

Geology

The Galápagos islands are located at the Galápagos triple junction. The archipelago is located on the Nazca plate (a tectonic plate), which is moving east/southeast, diving under the South American plate at a rate of about 2.5 inches (6.4 cm) per year. It is also atop the Galápagos hotspot, a place where the Earth's crust is being melted from below by a mantle plume, creating volcanoes. The first islands formed here at least 8 million and possibly up to 90 million years ago.

Volcanism has been continuous on the Galápagos Islands for at least 20 million years, and perhaps even longer. The mantle plume beneath the eastward-moving Nazca plate (51 km/Myr) has given rise to a 3-kilometre-thick platform under the island chain and seamounts.

Climate

Although the islands are located on the equator, the Humboldt Current brings cold water to them, causing frequent drizzles during most of the year. The weather is regularly influenced by the El Niño events, which occur every 3 to 7 years and bring warmer sea surface temperatures, a rise in sea level, greater wave action, and a depletion of nutrients in the water. This cycle can greatly affect the precipitation from one year to another. At Charles Darwin Station, the precipitation during the month of March in the particularly wet year of 1969 was 249.0 mm (9.80 in), but during March 1970 the next year it was only 1.2 mm (0.047 in).

There is also a large range in precipitation from one place to another and across the islands' two main seasons.

Ecology

Most of the Galápagos is covered in semi-desert vegetation, including shrublands, grasslands, and dry forest. A few of the islands have high-elevation areas with cooler temperatures and higher rainfall, which are home to humid-climate forests and shrublands, and montane grasslands (pampas) at the highest elevations. There are about 500 species of native vascular plants on the islands, including 90 species of ferns. About 180 vascular plant species are endemic.

Key Facts

Facts from Wikidata Q38095 (CC0).

Visiting Galapagos Islands

The Galapagos Islands are a small archipelago of islands belonging to Ecuador in the eastern Pacific Ocean. The islands are quite remote and isolated, lying some 1000 km (620 miles) west of the South American continent, and the archipelago is bisected by the equator. The Galapagos archipelago consists of 13 main islands and 6 smaller isles, which together embrace some 50,000 km2 (19,500 sq mi) of ocean.

The Galapagos Islands is also one of the world's first UNESCO World Heritage Sites.

Travel notes adapted from Wikivoyage: Galapagos Islands (CC BY-SA 4.0).

UNESCO's Description

With its outstanding natural beauty and two active volcanoes, the park illustrates the entire spectrum of ecosystems, ranging from tropical rainforests to glaciers, with striking contrasts between the snowcapped peaks and the forests of the plains. Its isolation has encouraged the survival of indigenous species such as the mountain tapir and the Andean condor.

From the UNESCO World Heritage Centre (CC BY-SA IGO 3.0).

Key Facts

Facts from Wikidata Q839603 (CC0).