Term
| Who owns the Galapagos islands? |
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Definition
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Term
| When were the islands declared a World Heritage Site? |
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Definition
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Term
| When were the islands declared a World Biosphere Reserve? |
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Definition
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Term
| Why are the islands historically and scientifically significant? |
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Definition
| Charles Darwin developed his theory of evolution there in the 1830s |
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Term
| How many islands are there? |
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Definition
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Term
| How many people live there? |
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Definition
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Term
| What is the rate of natural increase of the human population? |
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Definition
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Term
| Why do the islands have such a high immigration rate? |
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Definition
| Employment opportunities in fishing and tourism |
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Term
| Which natural event could be used as a model for how global warming will affect the Galapagos? |
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Definition
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Term
| How did El Nino affect the Galapagos in 1982/3? |
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Definition
| No albatross and 25% of penguin chicks hatched successfully. |
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Term
| Why are Galapagos species so vulnerable to extinctions? |
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Definition
| Many of them are endemic to the Galapagos or to individual islands |
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Term
| Why were animals such as tortoises able to evolve into giant species? |
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Definition
| They have no land predators |
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Term
| Why do invasive species threaten to dominate Galapagos ecosystems? |
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Definition
| Many of them have no natural predators so their populations increase with no controls. |
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Term
| How do Norwegian rats affect Galapagos ecosystems? |
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Definition
| Eat bird eggs and young, which reduces bird numbers |
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Term
| How do donkeys affect Galapagos ecosystems? |
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Definition
| Destroy cacti when they break them open to eat pulp |
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Term
| How do feral pigs affect Galapagos ecosystems? |
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Definition
| Eat bird and turtle eggs, decreasing population numbers |
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Term
| How do cats affect Galapagos ecosystems? |
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Definition
| Hunt birds, which have not developed a fear of predators |
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Term
| How do wild dogs affect Galapagos ecosystems? |
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Definition
| Wiped out a colony of 500 land iguanas on Santa Cruz |
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Term
| How do goats affect Galapagos ecosystems? |
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Definition
| Their browsing has caused several extinctions, such as the Pinta Giant tortoise, due to competition for grazing. |
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Term
| What was the name of the last Pinta Giant Tortoise? |
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Definition
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Term
| What do migrants do when they cannot find work in the tourist industry? |
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Definition
| Turn to illegal fishing and poaching, including of giant tortoises. |
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Term
| How has tourism in the Galapagos increased? |
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Definition
| 1,000 p.a in mid 1960s to 70,000+ p.a in late 1990s. |
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Term
| What happened in the mid 1980s to support tourism in the Galapagos? |
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Definition
| A second airport was opened in San Cristobal, to disperse and support more tourists |
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Term
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Definition
| Luxury hotels, sewage, water, imported fuel, ect. |
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Term
| What was the name of the oil tanker that ran aground in 2001? |
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Definition
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Term
| What are some negative effects on the Galapagos environment from tourism? |
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Definition
| Waste, litter, footpath erosion, overcrowding which can interfere with breeding patterns of animals such as sea lions. |
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Term
| How does commercial fishing affect dolphins? |
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Definition
| They die because they can be caught as a by-catch in nets meant for tuna. |
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Term
| How long can commercial fishing nets be? |
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Definition
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Term
| What is an example of how commercial fishing affects marine life? |
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Definition
| In 2002, 50 dead dolphins were found in the nets of a Columbian vessel that had been fishing illegally. The captain was fined 4 cents. |
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Term
| How have the Ecuadorian government tried to protect Galapagos marine life? |
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Definition
| Commercial fishing ban within the marine reserve since 1997, but it is difficult to patrol such a large area. |
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Term
| How will climate change affect the Islands? |
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Definition
| More El Ninos, which alter currents around the islands and change the nutrients available, so the food chain will be affected. |
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Term
| How did the Galapagos cope with the Jessica oil spill? |
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Definition
| Applied dispersants; 50,000 gallons offloaded from the ship, some oil removed with absorbent materials; animal rescue centres set up to deal with oiled animals and birds. |
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Term
| How is the $100 entrance fee to the Islands used? |
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Definition
| Maintenance of the Charles Darwin Research Centre and training local people as guides, but most goes to Ecuador government. |
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Term
| When was the zoning strategy developed? |
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Definition
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Term
| How is the migrant population on the Galapagos managed? |
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Definition
| Quotas; people must have a job lined up before arriving. |
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Term
| What are the 5 zones for permitted use? |
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Definition
| Intensive use; extensive use; primitive use; primitive scientific; special use. |
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Term
| What is an intensive use zone? |
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Definition
| Where 90 people are allowed to disembark daily. There are 25 of these sites. |
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Term
| What is an extensive use zone? |
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Definition
| Where 12 people are allowed to disembark daily. 16 of these sites. Less interesting. |
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Term
| What is a primitive use zone? |
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Definition
| Places which have introduced species but could still be of interest to some people. Permit required to visit. |
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Term
| What is a primitive scientific zone? |
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Definition
| Areas that can only be used for scientific research, with no casual visitors. |
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Term
| What is a special use zone? |
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Definition
| Areas next to colonised zones and can be exploited by the residents for wood, sand, and volcanic rock. Use is strictly controlled. |
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Term
| How does the Charles Darwin Research Centre help maintain biodiversity? |
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Definition
| Monitors species populations and advises the government about environmental policies. |
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