scholarly journals Tangles of Care: Killing Goats to Save Tortoises on the Galápagos Islands

2017 ◽  
Vol 32 (3) ◽  
pp. 424-449 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paolo Bocci
Keyword(s):  
Endemic Species ◽  
Galapagos Islands ◽  
Environmental Crisis ◽  
Galápagos Islands ◽  
Conservation Measures ◽  
Political Implications ◽  
The World ◽  
Eradication Campaign ◽  
Global And Local

If calls to care for other species multiply in a time of global and local environmental crisis, this article demonstrates that caring practices are not always as benevolent or irenic as imagined. To save endemic tortoises from the menace of extinction, Proyecto Isabela killed more than two hundred thousand goats on the Galápagos Islands in the largest mammal eradication campaign in the world. While anthropologists have looked at human engagements with unwanted species as habitual and even pleasurable, I discuss an exceptional intervention that was ethically inflected toward saving an endemic species, yet also controversial and distressing. Exploring eradication’s biological, ecological, and political implications and discussing opposing practices of care for goats among residents, I move past the recognition that humans live in a multispecies world and point to the contentious nature of living with nonhuman others. I go on to argue that realizing competing forms of care may help conservation measures—and, indeed, life in the Anthropocene—to move beyond the logic of success and failure toward an open-ended commitment to the more-than-human.

Galápagos Islands

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peter V. N. Henderson
Keyword(s):  
Endemic Species ◽  
Native Species ◽  
National Park ◽  
Galapagos Islands ◽  
Galápagos Islands ◽  
Fresh Meat ◽  
Fragile Environment ◽  
The Government ◽  
Feral Animals ◽  
Unique Species

The Galápagos Islands, long acknowledged as Darwin’s “Living Laboratory,” are one of the world’s most important ecological treasures. From their discovery in 1535 until the creation of the Galápagos National Park in 1959, human hands touched lightly on their shores. Seemingly incapable of sustaining colonization because of poor soil, a scarcity of water, and no mineral wealth, the absence of humans allowed the native species of the Galápagos to remain undisturbed until whalers in the 1790s found that the lumbering Galápagos tortoises could be stored for months in their ship’s holds as a source of fresh meat. In 1832 Ecuador took possession of the archipelago but its colonization efforts generally failed. Although human settlement remained minimal, mammals that people brought (goats, donkeys, pigs, dogs, and cats) flourished and diminished the numbers of the endemic species. When the Galápagos National Park opened, only about 2,000 people lived on the islands along with the remaining endemic species and hundreds of thousands of feral animals. Meanwhile, naturalist Charles Darwin’s remarkable 1859 study, On the Origins of Species had stimulated biologists’ interest in the islands’ wildlife by presenting overwhelming proof of evolution. Other biologists questioned his idea of natural selection as the mechanism behind evolution; consequently they gathered evidence from collected specimens and observations in the archipelago, and finally resolved the debate in Darwin’s favor. After 1990, popular interest in the islands’ wildlife heightened as a result of photography, travelers’ accounts, and films, so tourism increased as did the number of Ecuadorian immigrants eager to earn money in the tourist industry. By 2020, Ecuadorian authorities faced the dilemma of balancing the need to preserve the unique species and their fragile environment against the revenue generated by visitors, a battle environmentalists fear the government is losing.

Population, Resources, and Technology: Political Implications of the Environmental Crisis

1972 ◽  
Vol 26 (2) ◽  
pp. 175-212 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nazli Choucri ◽  
James P. Bennett
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Crisis ◽  
The Political ◽  
Political Consequences ◽  
Precise Nature ◽  
Popu Lation ◽  
World Today ◽  
Technological Advances ◽  
Political Implications ◽  
The World ◽  
Exponential Rates

Virtually eveyone reconizes the existence on an environmental crisis in the world today, but may uncertianties remain concerning the precise nature of this cirsis and its domestic and interational implications. This much is clear: The world's popu;lation is continuing to grow at an alarming pace; finite resources are being utilized at exponential rates; and technological advances are contributing to negative ecological outcomes. These trends have been documented extensively. Their political significance, however, has received little attention if only because the visibility of the problem is such a recent phenomenon. This article is addressed to some of the political consequences and international implications of the environmental crisis.

scholarly journals Reconstructing the history and biological consequences of a plant invasion on the Galápagos islands

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Matthew J.S. Gibson ◽  
María de Lourdes Torres ◽  
Yaniv Brandvain ◽  
Leonie C. Moyle
Keyword(s):  
Endemic Species ◽  
Native Species ◽  
Evolutionary Biology ◽  
Galapagos Islands ◽  
Fruit Color ◽  
Galápagos Islands ◽  
Natural Experiments ◽  
Wild Tomato ◽  
Population Genomic ◽  
History Of

AbstractThe introduction of non-native species into new habitats is one of the foremost risks to global biodiversity. Here, we evaluate a recent invasion of wild tomato (Solanum pimpinellifolium) onto the Galápagos islands from a population genomic perspective, using a large panel of novel collections from the archipelago as well as historical accessions from mainland Ecuador and Peru. We infer a recent invasion of S. pimpinellifolium on the islands, largely the result of a single event from central Ecuador which, despite its recency, has rapidly spread onto several islands in the Galápagos. By reconstructing patterns of local ancestry throughout the genomes of invasive plants, we uncover evidence for recent hybridization and introgression between S. pimpinellifolium and the closely related endemic species Solanum cheesmaniae. Two large introgressed regions overlap with known fruit color loci involved in carotenoid biosynthesis. Instead of red fruits, admixed individuals with endemic haplotypes at these loci have orange fruit colors that are typically characteristic of the endemic species. We therefore infer that introgression explains the observed trait convergence. Moreover, we infer roles for two independent loci in driving this pattern, and a likely history of selection favoring the repeated phenotypic transition from red to orange fruits. Together, our data reconstruct a complex history of invasion, expansion, and gene flow among wild tomatoes on the Galápagos islands. These findings provide critical data on the evolutionary importance of hybridization during colonization and its role in influencing conservation outcomes.Significance StatementThe isolation and unique diversity of the Galápagos Islands provide numerous natural experiments that have enriched our understanding of evolutionary biology. Here we use population genomic sequencing to reconstruct the timing, path, and consequences of a biological invasion by wild tomato onto the Galápagos. We infer that invasive populations originated from a recent human-mediated migration event from central Ecuador. Our data also indicate that invasive populations are hybridizing with endemic populations, and that this has led to some invasive individuals adopting both fruit color genes and the fruit color characteristic of the endemic island species. Our results demonstrate how hybridization can shape patterns of trait evolution over very short time scales, and characterize genetic factors underlying invasive success.

scholarly journals Cucumis dipsaceus (hedgehog gourd).

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shruti Dube
Keyword(s):  
Community Composition ◽  
Native Species ◽  
Arabian Peninsula ◽  
Galapagos Islands ◽  
Natural Ecosystem ◽  
Galápagos Islands ◽  
Large Area ◽  
The World

Abstract Cucumis dipsaceus is an annual climbing herb native to Africa and the Arabian Peninsula that has become invasive in many regions around the world where it spread or was introduced. In Mexico, this species is possibly expanding and is classified as an invasive. In the Galapagos Islands C. dipsaceus has invaded a large area and is affecting the natural ecosystem by altering community composition and threatening native species.

Cockroaches of the Galápagos Islands, Ecuador, with descriptions of three new species (Insecta: Blattodea)

1992 ◽  
Vol 70 (11) ◽  
pp. 2202-2217 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stewart B. Peck ◽  
Louis M. Roth
Keyword(s):  
New Species ◽  
Introduced Species ◽  
Endemic Species ◽  
New Records ◽  
Galapagos Islands ◽  
Galápagos Islands ◽  
Nauphoeta Cinerea ◽  
Per Se ◽  
Three New Species ◽  
Periplaneta Australasiae

Eighteen species of cockroaches are reported to occur on the Galápagos Islands. Five species are endemic and in this paper three of these are described as new species: Chorisoneura cristobalensis Roth, C. carpenteri Roth, and Ischnoptera santacruzensis Roth. Endemic Ischnoptera snodgrasii (McNeill) COMB.NOV. is transferred from Anisopygia, and redescribed. Previous reports of the introduced species Periplaneta brunnea, Nauphoeta cinerea, and Phoetalia pallida could not be confirmed. These species may not have become established or may have become extinct. New records of native or introduced species are given for Holocompsa nitidula, Holocompsa sp., Anaplecta lateralis, Blaberus parabolicus, and Rhyparobia maderae. Of the introduced species, only Periplaneta australasiae, Symploce pallens, and Pycnoscelus surinamensis seem to have invaded native (undisturbed) habitats. The endemic species are partially or wholly flightless. This may not be a result of island life per se, but may be a specialization for life in more homogeneous litter or cave habitats at higher elevations on the islands.

The Chloropidae (Diptera) of the Galápagos Islands, Ecuador

2003 ◽  
Vol 34 (3) ◽  
pp. 265-280 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jessica Forrest ◽  
Terry Wheeler
Keyword(s):  
New Species ◽  
Endemic Species ◽  
Galapagos Islands ◽  
Formal Description ◽  
Galápagos Islands ◽  
Insufficient Information ◽  
First Time

AbstractThirteen species of Chloropidae are recorded from the Galápagos Islands, Ecuador. Seven new species are described: Diplotoxa loma sp. n. (subfamily Chloropinae); Conioscinella empheria sp. n.; Gaurax gethosyne sp. n.; Hippelates alyscus sp. n.; Liohippelates baptipalpis sp. n.; Olcella anaclasta sp. n.; Olcella lupina sp. n. (subfamily Oscinellinae). Another species in the genus Apallates is apparently undescribed, but there is insufficient information to justify a formal description. Monochaetoscinella anonyma is recorded for the first time from the archipelago. Four species previously recorded from the archipelago were also identified: Cadrema pallida; Conioscinella galapagensis; Elachiptera cultrata; Liohippelates galapagensis. Previously published Galápagos records of Liohippelates pusio apparently refer to L. galapagensis. A key to the Galápagos species of Chloropidae is given. Geographic affinities of the Galápagos chloropid fauna are similar to those of other Diptera from the archipelago, with few pantropical species, some species also found in the northern Neotropical and southern Nearctic regions, and endemic species apparently with Neotropical sister groups.

The Ceratopogonidae (Diptera) of the Galápagos Islands, Ecuador with a discussion of their phylogenetic relationships and zoogeographic origins

1991 ◽  
Vol 22 (1) ◽  
pp. 97-122 ◽  
Author(s):  
Art Borkent
Keyword(s):  
Endemic Species ◽  
Phylogenetic Relationships ◽  
New World ◽  
Galapagos Islands ◽  
Oceanic Islands ◽  
Sister Species ◽  
Galápagos Islands ◽  
Widespread Species ◽  
Natural Dispersal ◽  
Eleven Species

AbstractEleven species of Ceratopogonidae are recognized on the Galápagos Islands. Four of these appear to be endemic, six are widespread occurring elsewhere on the continental Americas and one is of uncertain distributional status. One of the endemic species is described as new, Dasyhelea sinclairi Borkent. Each of the species is most closely related to taxa occurring elsewhere than on the Galápagos Islands (with one possible but unlikely exception of two of these being sister species), indicating at least ten independent invasions of the islands by the ancestors or ancestral populations of these species. It is uncertain whether the widespread species have been brought through the agency of man or through natural dispersal to the Galápagos Islands. Based on comparisons with the Ceratopogonidae fauna of oceanic islands elsewhere, the presence of endemic species only in the genera Forcipomyia and Dasyhelea on the Galápagos Islands is likely due to the superior dispersal capabilities of members of these genera. This may also explain the presence of those ceratopogonid species occurring both on the Galápagos Islands and the New World mainland.

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