There is no better place to study this year's British Science Week theme ‘Change and Adapt’ than on the iconic Galapagos Islands.
Education Writer
Celebrate British Science Week with us this year. Explore the wealth of exciting resources available on our Discovering Galapagos Teacher Zone website and read about the vital work we support.
There is no better place to study adaptation and change than on the Galapagos Islands, where the seeds of Darwin’s revolutionary theory of evolution by natural selection were planted. Galapagos offers a wealth of wonderful wildlife to explore, where species have had to adapt and change to survive in the harsh equatorial environment.
Darwin’s ‘The Voyage on the Beagle’ describes how inhabitants of the Islands could ‘distinguish the tortoises from the different islands; and that they differ not only in size but in other characters.’ Challenge your students to hypothesise why tortoises have different shaped shells on different islands and how adaptation may lead to evolution with our Evolution of the Galapagos Giant Tortoise activity.
We have a range of resources to inspire and educate young people about the wonders of Galapagos, tailored to different age groups and available in both English and Spanish.
Explore the fascinating life of the flightless cormorant and discover why and how this now endemic marine bird has become flightless. How can we help protect its future?
Discover why the marine iguana, described by Darwin as ‘a hideous-looking creature, of a dirty black colour, stupid and sluggish in its movements,’ is the only sea-faring lizard in the world. Why do these cold-blooded reptiles take the plunge into the turbulent Pacific Ocean? Discover their remarkable evolutionary history with our Amazing Adaptations activity.
Despite many species across the world facing threats from climate change, scientists recently discovered an incredible response in some marine iguanas to environmental change… they shrink! Explore ‘The Case of the Shrinking Dragons’ in our Climate Change activity to find out more.
Take your students on a discovery adventure of the Galapagos Islands for science week and join our growing community of intrepid young scientists and future conservation ambassadors!
Observations made by Charles Darwin during his visit to Galapagos in 1835 have given the Archipelago a special place in history and in the development of modern science.
If you are not already, please consider becoming a member to help play a vital part in the ongoing efforts to preserve and protect these incredible Islands and their unique flora and fauna.
