European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - April 26, 1994, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Modern visitors make own discoveries on Galapagos islands in a. A a a a a a. A a. A. .�?�7fs�?~ r a or r. -. %s5s�i$ssasi<ic� a >wjy4�/i it jux. A % i n a Ltd Volt it it / a is it x % it % a Vas of. 4#s? it it a a it a ? be Kish Ltd  amp a amp it it we it<k0frvsw a. Clockwise from top a Marine iguana suns itself in an age old ritual As tourists take a dip in the Ocean Charles Darwin filled 18 notebooks a with his observations on the islands m 1835 a sea lion nurses her pups within easy View of a human visitor. By Hugh a. Mulligan the associated press ust Down from Cambridge England Young Charles Darwin reached the Galapagos islands in the fall of 1835 As the unpaid naturalist abroad has Beagle a 10-gun Brigantine circling the Globe on a mapping expedition. Going ashore on san Cristobal now the capital of the islands he met a pair of tortoises each weighing about 700 pounds. Or one munching on a succulent Cactus pod stared at him Quot and slowly stalked away. The other gave a deep Hiss and Drew in its  so Many iguanas slithered about Darwin wrote in one of the 18 notebooks he filled with his observations there was Quot hardly a spot free from their Burrows to pitch our single  they struck him As Quot ugly animals. Lazy. And half torpid Quot with Quot a singularly stupid appearance. That was More than a Century and a half ago but human visitors splashing ashore from a rubber Dinghy these Days Jot Down almost the same impressions. The Tortoise hissing at them might have been the same leathery looking Chap that greeted Damm. After All they live for 250 years. However it is now forbidden to ride on their backs As Darwin did it the Days when there were no licensed guides about. Over the years the iguanas Don t seem to have smart ened up much or grown any less lethargic. When a group of tourists made what is called a Quot wet Landing on Espanola Island a 5-foot-Long Marine iguana was having its Long Tail tugged unmercifully by a playful sea lion Pup another stared Dol Tashly into the Lens of a camcorder poked within inches of its Spiky snout. As Darwin noted the wildlife on these islands is exceedingly tame. A fat sea lion cow suckling a litter of pups paid no heed when the Landing party practically had to step Over her but she nipped and chased off a tiny Freeloader who evidently did not belong to her Brunch Bunch. The group had to Detour from the marked Trail to which visitors Are normally restricted to oblige a Stork billed Bird called a Blue footed Booby that had chosen the Middle of the path to Hatch her Chicks. Mother proudly lifted up an enormous Wing to display a tiny fur Ball already stirring on the half  a a a a a such was our introduction. To the Galapagos islands which straddle the Equator 621 Miles off the coast of Ecuador. And we almost did t get there. Ecuador president Sixto Duran Ballen had to intervene personally and overrule department Heads and environment groups to allow the 25,000-ton cruise ship Vista fjord to Call at this Remote archipelago where Darwin did the Laboratory research for his theory of evolution. Quot we Are not used to vessels this size Quot explained biologist Michael Blie Marieder chief of tourism for the islands. Quot conservation groups on the Mainland feared there might be big damage to the fragile eco Structure. I personally do not believe that. C Quot our president decided to evaluate this visit to see i a there was any real damage or what would be the Bene i of allowing More big ships to Call  the 628-foot Long Vista fjord was not permitted to cruise around the 13 Large islands and scores of smear islets and volcanic rocks that make up the archipelago. 425 passengers were distributed among an Armada o Small yachts and fishing boats that Call at approved sies throughout the islands on a rigidly controlled Schedu e. Quot each site has a daily visitor limit Quot Blie Marieder explained. Quot some trails with a hard lava flow can to e 180 to 200 visitors a Day. Other Sites where the soil is More easily eroded Are very fragile. On one Small is a Daphne boats carrying a dozen passengers or less May Call Only once a  z1 a giant Tortoise leaves tracks in the Sand As it pulls itself across a Gate Pagos Beach. Guides who have passed a rigorous monthlong training course at the Darwin research station accompany each dozen or so visitors  Jorge Torres born in the islands was assigned to our party of 10 aboard the sea Cloud a spotless 85-foot Ketch. For three Days he guided us to a sampling of islands abounding in Flora and Fauna found nowhere else in the world and often not even on nearby islands. Drag racing school of dolphins we sailed West to uninhabited Espanola Island where the largest and most colourful Marine iguanas make their Home. Unlike Rne Brown bodied species on the other islands they have patches of dark red on their sides and Green trim along their saw toothed spines. Two of these animated editions of a Jurassic Park movie poster were sunbathing on the rocks when our Panga or rubber Dingy came ashore. ,. A a Quot they need the Sun s heat to jump Start their bodies _ explained Torres As he led the Way Over a Rocky Trail to the Cliffs where 12,000 pairs of waved Albatross practically the entire world population of this magnificent sea Are nest each Spring. Below an Ocean blowhole was shooting a sume of Spray 100 feet into the air every five seconds. In a cloudless sky Broad winged frigate Birds the. Kleptomaniac of Birdland engaged in dogfights with masked and Blue footed boobies scaring the food out of their beaks and scooping it up with a Kamikaze dive before it hit the water. Because of the Cooling Humboldt current flowing North from Antarctica the westernmost islands Host a tropical Penguin a cuddly fur Seal that avoids the equatorial Sun in cozy sea Grottoes and the last surviving 800 pair of flightless cormorants which lost their will to Fly because of the abundance of baby octopus in the Rocky shallows. Bishop Tomas de Berlanga of Panama who discovered the islands by Accident in 1535 when his Galleon bound for. Peru drifted off course wrote the holy roman emperor Charles v about Quot Birds so silly they know not How to  centuries ago whaling captains and buccaneers frequenting the islands put goats and pigs ashore to provide fresh meat on their return. The wild Goat population is now estimated at 300,000. Settlers attempting to grow sugar and mine Salt brought in horses Burros cats and dogs which now roam free devouring the iguanas and hatching Birds and tortoises. No one knows who introduced the Black rats the worst predators. The Beach on Floreana a sparsely settled Island was gouged with the tractor sized treads of giant sea tortoises. The Jade Green Bay where we swam was blotched with their shadows As they waited to come ashore after dark and Lay their eggs. Now and then from the swells arose the jut Jawed reptilian profile that Darwin called Quot antediluvian Quot and was the Model for Steven Spielberg s outer space creature . 4 once there were hundreds of thousands of Mammoth tortoises in these islands. Now they number less than 15,000. Their ranks were decimated by explorers whalers and pirates who tossed them into the holds of their ships where they could live for a year without food or water supplying tasty meat for the Crew and Oil for the lamps. Quot single vessels have taken away As Many As 700, Darwin lamented in his notebooks. Quot Ope frigate some years since brought Down to the  in one Day 200 _ tortoises several so Large it required six or eight men to lift  _ v to prevent further Slaughter of the unique wildlife Ecuador declared the entire Galapagos islands exclusive of the sparsely settled areas a National Park in 1959, the 100th anniversary of the publication of Darwin s the origin of species. In 1986, the Rich Marine life in the it surrounding seas was similarly protected out to a distance of 15 nautical Miles. But the wildlife is still not Safe. Last week firefighters had to dig trenches to control a Blaze that had been burning since april 11 on Isabela the largest of the Chain s islands. The fire which had been fanned by stiff winds was stopped on sunday just Short of a nesting area for the giant Tortoise. Officials who had been considering ways to Rescue the tortoises said they believed the fire had been started by poachers. The Darwin research station on Santa Cruz Island has begun eradicating wild goats dogs Black rats and other predators. The scientists have had More Success Breeding tortoises and land iguanas in temporary Captivity. Already More than 1,500 tortoises have been released on various islands. During his three week stay Darwin noted How the tortoises differed from Island to Island How the iguanas varied on Quot islands Only 50 or 60 Miles apart Quot and How similar Birds had different shaped Bills Quot depending on How they got their  these differences became the evidence for Darwin s the origin of species which Shook the theologians and angered the pious Captain of the Beagle. Quot one is astonished at the amount of creative Force if such an expression May be used displayed on these Rocky Barren islands Quot Darwin wrote in his journal later adding Quot both in space and time we seem to be brought somewhat near to that great fact a the mystery of mysteries a the first appearance of Pew life on  the Galapagos saved two thrills for our final Day. First while emerging from the surf on rugged Lobos Island guide Torres got chased by a Bull Seal and performed daring choreography fleeing across the jagged rocks. Then with inches to spare on either Side the sea Clou sailed through kicker Rock a 500-foot High vertical Shaft split erosion. On the ledges of those sheer Cliff Ryalls male frigate Birds were passionately puffing up their Chest glands into giant red hearts and whistling sensuously. When a female flew by they shimmied and Shook their 4-foot wingspan in a furious fan dance. Love was in the air but it was time to go. Darw in anticipated our regret at leaving these enchanted islands Enca Tadas the Spanish called them a when he wrote in his journal. Quot it is the Fate of most voyagers no sooner to discover what is most interesting in any locality that they Are hurried from  the stars and stripes 16 the stars and stripes tuesday april 26, 1994