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The Galapagos Islands are located just below the equator, 600 miles off the coast of Ecuador in South America. They are a group of nineteen volcanic islands and range in size and age. The oldest islands are over 4 million years old, while the youngest islands are still being formed today.

The Galapagos Islands have fascinated people for hundreds of years. They were first discovered by accident in 1535 when Tomas Berlanga’s ship was carried out to the islands by the ocean currents.

Later, in 1835, the Galapagos Islands were studied by Charles Darwin. He was a young naturalist right out of college when he went on his expedition to the Galapagos Islands aboard a ship named the Beagle.

Darwin studied the many different species of birds, tortoises and iguanas that inhabited the islands and he made an astonishing observation. Darwin noticed that many species had features that varied from island to island. The finch, for example, a bird that populates the Galapagos Islands, had beaks that varied in size and shape. Even the giant tortoises and iguanas showed visible differences from one another.

Why did these islands come to be home to such a variety of animal species? This question along with his many observations resulted in Darwin’s theory of evolution by natural selection.

The Galapagos Islands are still best known for being the inspiration behind Darwin’s theory of natural selection. Today, you can still see amazing wildlife there, and the islands have become a popular destination for tourists. Four of the islands are inhabited, with a total population of 17,000. The large tortoises and iguanas still live on the islands.