Where does the word Galapagos come from?

Where does the word Galapagos come from?

In 1570 the Galapagos Islands were included in a world atlas by a Flemish cartographer Abraham Ortelius. He named the islands ‘Insulae de los de Galapagos’. The shells of the giant tortoises reminded the visitors of horse saddles, and Galapagos comes from the Spanish word for saddle.

What does Galapagos mean?

Definitions of Galapagos. a group of islands in the Pacific off South America; owned by Ecuador; known for unusual animal life. synonyms: Galapagos Islands. example of: island. a land mass (smaller than a continent) that is surrounded by water.

What is the nickname of the Galapagos Islands?

Official name: “Archipiélago de Colón,” mostly known as the Spanish name ‘Islas Galápagos’, but also known as the Enchanted Islands.

How many animals are in the Galapagos Islands?

Nearly 9,000 species are found on the islands and their surrounding waters, many of them endemic. The total land mass is almost 8,000km2; the Galapagos Marine Reserve surrounding the archipelago is 138,000km2. The Galapagos National Park covers about 95% of the islands.

Why are there no predators in Galapagos?

The Galapagos Hawk belongs to the family Buteo Galapagoensis. The theory of why these adaptions took place is that there were no large predators when cormorants first arrived in the Galapagos, making flight an unnecessary and metabolically exhaustive trait.

Are there predators in Galapagos?

The Galapagos hawk is the apex predator in the Galapagos Islands and there are no predators that can take on the hawks. The hawks eat insects, lizards and small birds. In the Galapagos Islands the hawks also consume carrion and do eat dead birds and animals.

Why is Galapagos so special?

The Galapagos Islands are uniquely located on both sides of the equator in both the Northern and Southern Hemispheres. The islands are situated at a point in the Pacific Ocean where three ocean currents collide, creating a unique area in the sea where warm and varying degrees of cold water meet.

What are the most studied animals in the Galapagos?

Top 10 Galapagos Islands Animals To Spot

• Galapagos Tortoises. The iconic tortoises are probably the most important species on the Galapagos Islands and the most famous.
• Marine Iguana.
• Galapagos Finches.
• Galapagos Penguin.
• Blue-Footed Booby.
• Galapagos Sea Lions.
• Magnificent Frigatebird.
• Sally Lightfoot Crabs.