Dear Giant Tortoise - We arrived in the Galapagos today!

Dear Giant Tortoise,

             Today we finally arrived in the Galapagos Islands! It wasn't until after a 9 a.m flight, a 12 p.m flight, five bus rides, and one boat that we arrived on your home island of Santa Cruz. As we drove closer and closer to the tortoise preserve where you live, more and more trees and plants crept into view until, all of sudden, the land surrounding the road was covered in lush jungle. We then took a quick tour of two craters, Los Gemelos or “The Twins,” that were similar in size and depth. The formed when lava tried to break through the tough surface of the earth and failed because of the impenetrable rock layers, The lava eventually found a spot with weaker rock layers where it was finally able to break through and form a small volcano. The area where it originally attempted to emerge then collapsed without the lava under it – forming the craters. We also saw a wide variety of vibrant plants. The majority of the plants were actually blackberry bushes, an invasive species.  Another type of plant that grew in this area was the Escalesia tree.  This tree is a keystone species in its environment.  Its leaves have little furs on them that catch the morning dew and fog.  This moisture falls off of the leaves, and moisturizes the ground and small plants underneath the tree - forming a mini ecosystem.  The Escalesia tree is also known as the Everyoung tree because it grows quickly and becomes too large for its small, shallow roots. These trees usually die around age 20, which is why they are forever young. They are also called Evergreen trees because their foliage stays green throughout all the seasons. 

             Then we headed to lunch at your home - the Giant Tortoise Reserve! It was fun to put on rubber boots and walked around the reserve. Our favorite part was being able to see the difference between the males and females of your species. You females tortoises are much jumpier and you males move around much more. One of the more interesting things to see when we arrived in your environment was how muddy the area is. We wonder, How do you put up with such a muddy environment? And why is it that both of you males and females enjoy rolling in the mud and eating the grass so much? 

We also found it funny when the females would run away from the males who would attempt to mate with them. Because it resembled a game of chase, we often found ourselves cheering on the slower females who were attempting to run away from the faster male.

Seeing you eat was also a funny sight. You never seem to be full! With a face that looks like E.T. you also look really cute when you tug at the blades of grass that cover the ground. How are you never full? 

Finally we left the reserve. But not without swerving along the road to avoid hitting a few of you on the way out. Make sure to stay out of the road! 

Yours

Mary Helen, Christine, and Emmy