We share ten fun facts about the Galápagos Islands.

The archipelago is made up of 13 major islands and seven smaller islands.

The islands each have two names: one Spanish and one English.

Only five islands are inhabited: Baltra, Santa Cruz, Isabela, Floreana, and San Cristóbal.

The oldest island in the Galápagos is Española – it is estimated to be 3.5 million years old.

Fernandina is the youngest island at just 1 million years old.

Fernandina Island

One minor island is paradoxically called Nameless Island.

The archipelago was named after the giant tortoises found there: Flemish cartographer Abraham Ortelius named them Insulae de los Galopegos in 1574.

The Galápagos mockingbird was the first creature that Darwin noticed varied from island to island.

The Galápagos penguin is the only penguin that has its natural habitat
in the northern hemisphere. It is also the second-smallest penguin in
the world.

Charles Darwin hated marine iguanas and dubbed them ‘imps of darkness’.

Last updated: 16 Jun 2017
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