Mankind Threatens to Destroy Cradle of Evolution
By Ian Johnston
IT is the remote paradise whose extraordinary wildlife inspired Charles Darwin to develop the theory of evolution. Home to hundreds of species of animals and plants found nowhere else on Earth, the Galapagos Islands hold a unique position in conservation – arguably the most important ecological site in the world.
But now the Ecuadorian government is warning it may ban thousands of eco-tourists who flock to the world heritage site every year because their presence is threatening the islands’ flora and fauna – from the giant tortoises to the finches which first caught Darwin’s interest.
Last year 120,000 tourists visited the Galapagos, which lie in the Pacific Ocean, up from 40,000 in 1991. Numbers are rising at an annual rate of 12 per cent, fuelling new building on the islands to accommodate them. Over-fishing is also blamed for putting some marine species at risk.
Officials from the UN’s scientific and cultural body, Unesco, were yesterday completing a visit to the islands and a senior official at the world body said it had “a tremendous number of concerns” about the islands.
Ecuador’s central government warned the Galapagos’s biodiversity was in “imminent danger” and the president, Rafael Correa, signed an emergency decree designed to help the archipelago.
Mr Correa warned he may temporarily suspend tourism permits for the islands. Endangered tortoises, including “Lonesome George” who is believed to be the last Pinta tortoise in existence, mangrove finches, Galapagos penguins and waved albatross live alongside 18,000 islanders who earn a living from fishing and tourism. A further 15,000 people are believed to live illegally on the islands.
Meanwhile, 36 Boeing 737 flights arrive on the islands every week and there are plans to open a new airport.
President Correa said: “We are conscious of the priority and importance that the Galapagos Islands have for the country. We are pushing for a series of actions to overcome the huge institutional, environmental and social crisis in the islands.”
The Charles Darwin Foundation (CDF), a conservation body, said there was a need for “urgent and radical change” as the rapid economic growth caused by the rise in tourism – coupled with a similar rise in immigration – was “outstripping the capacity of management authorities of Galapagos”.
Dr Graham Watkins, executive director of CDF on the Galapagos, said: “The consequences include an increase in invasive species, increased risk of pollution and the likelihood of greater pressures on high-value marine resources.”
There are now 748 species of introduced plants compared to the 500 species of native plants. “This extraordinary archipelago is remarkably fragile and highly susceptible to the expanding, unsustainable cycle of economic and population growth and associated political, social and cultural change,” a CDF spokeswoman said.
Marc Patry, a Unesco official involved in the islands’ heritage site status, and who lived on the Galapagos for four years, said: “The government of Ecuador has done a lot of work setting up a legal framework and proper management of the islands, but it has a difficulty putting that into practice.
“The local interests have a different agenda. There’s confrontation between national and local visions. The local politicians are much more focused on economic development and less focused on sustainable development.”
At times, this conflict has become violent. Last month a national park official needed hospital treatment after an incident with Ecuadorian armed forces.
“The park staff came to one of the islands where the military base is locating. The military was licensing tourist activities. From the park perspective, they thought they didn’t have a right to do that,” Mr Patry said.
He added: “Any world heritage site is always at risk if the country doesn’t hold up their side of the bargain. I think at this stage we have identified a lot of concerns over the past few years, a tremendous number of concerns.”
However, he said Unesco did not want to see tourism banned entirely. “If tourism stopped tomorrow, you’d have 30,000 people out of a job,” he said.
Trips where people spent the entire time on a boat, he said, had the least impact because “you are not promoting hotels, restaurants, T-shirt shops all over the place”.
Patricio Tamariz, a spokesman from Ecuador’s Ministry of Tourism, said:
“The good government in the Galapagos Islands, since Charles Darwin was there, has meant we have retained 95 per cent of the species.”
However, he warned the government might suspend tourism permits “until scientific studies see exactly how much the capacity of the islands can withstand without too much impact”.
Environmentalists stressed the importance of the islands to the world.
Dr Richard Dixon, of WWF Scotland, said: ” Darwin found there a very isolated and undisturbed eco-system. It is a terribly important part of the world to preserve.”
Asked if he would like to go to the Galapagos, Dr Dixon said: “Obviously, flying round the world is not very good for the environment, but I would have thought every environmentalist would have an interest in going because of the historical connection and the beautiful wildlife. It is a victim of its own success.”
THE LAST TORTOISE
ONLY one known pinta tortoise remains. When ‘Lonesome George’ dies, his species will end with him. Thought to be up to 90 years old, George was found in 1971 on Pinta Island, where the species is thought to have adapted a saddle-backed shell to allow the long neck to reach for higher vegetation.
PACE-SETTERS
TINY land snails are an example of “adaptive radiation” – the rapid development of new species to fill many ecological habitats. They vary in size between 6mm and 25mm and can only be active in humid conditions. Road-building, accidental fires and farming have all damaged their habitats.
TAKING THE BAIT
RICE rats, harsh-furred rodents up to 20cm long, have suffered “immensely” from the presence of humans in Galapagos. The introduction of bigger rats is also partly to blame. A special bait trap has been developed, designed to kill larger rodents, while leaving rice rats unharmed.
SHARKS TO SOUP
THERE are 27 species of sharks native to the Galapagos, some of which are a significant source of income for the local community as a tourist attraction. They have all been protected since 1994, but are under constant threat from illegal fishing because their fins are used to make soup.
SOARING THREAT
THE largest bird in the Galapagos Islands, the waved albatross, can only breed during a short period of the year and is threatened by fishing activities in the sea off Ecuador and Peru. In the past, they have also been affected by water pollution such as oil slicks. They have a wingspan of 2.35 metres.
TODAY’S DINOSAUR
Reminiscent of dinosaurs, land iguanas are a fascinating species. Adults can grow to more than a metre in length, weigh up to 13kg and can live for 60 years. Dogs and cats have hunted iguanas, while goats have eaten areas of vegetation they depend on for food.
SMALLEST PENGUIN
THE Galapagos are home to one of the smallest penguins, one threatened by warming seas and a lack of food. It is also vulnerable to predators such as feral cats, dogs and rats. It is unique in having adapted to tropical land temperatures by holding its wings away from its body.
PETREL IN PERIL
THE Galapagos petrel is a sea bird in danger of extinction because its nesting sites were lost when man began to use the volcanic soil areas of the highlands for crops and livestock. Rats and pigs also eat the eggs and nestlings.
The Hawaiian petrel is also in danger of extinction.
OVER-FISHING
SEA cucumbers play a major role in the ecosystems protected by the Galapagos Marine Reserve, but have been left in a very vulnerable position by overfishing. They are related to the starfish and sea urchins and breed by floating eggs and sperm into water.
FAILING FINCHES
THE mangrove finch is the most vulnerable of the finches, feeding mainly on insects caught in vegetation. Fewer than 100 adult birds survive. Small populations are liable to become extinct if their environment changes. Finches are vulnerable to failing food supplies and invasive species.
More info: www.darwinfoundation.org www.galapagos.com
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