Back in the US

For some reason it seems like its easier to update my blog when I am traveling than it is once I've returned home. So, in case you're wondering, I've been back in the US for a couple of weeks now. Once I returned to North Carolina on June 4 I did my laundry and re-packed my suitcase for a short trip to sunny California. I was in Berkeley for a few days at a workshop that will help me with some of the satellite image analysis I have planned for my study area in the Galapagos (of Isabela Island). After my few days in California I flew back to North Carolina.

Phew! That's a lot of traveling. I will probably stay put for another year before heading back to the Galapagos, but you never know. As soon as I head back I'll let everyone know to start checking the blog again. Thanks for checking in and for leaving comments. I had a great time and was glad to have everyone following along!

Until next year...

Just a few action shots

FYI...I was a little slow to update my blog in the last few days before I left for Quito and headed back to North Carolina. So, I have decided to add a few more entries to get you all caught up with my travels. My time in Isabela was fantastic, but after working there for almost a week it was time to head back to Santa Cruz. Even though the islands are generally calm and life is easy going, returning to Puerto Ayora in Santa Cruz after being on Isabela was like going from a small town in the US to New York city. It took me a day or so to adjust to the rapid pace of life on Puerto Ayora, but I made it through just fine. I know, don't feel too sorry for me.

Once back in Santa Cruz, it was time for my classmates and advisor to get everything into quarantine for their upcoming trip to Alcedo Volcano on Isabela Island. Alcedo is considered a 'pristine' site by scientists at the Charles Darwin Research Station and the Galapagos National Park, so they take all necessary precautions to prevent non-native plants and animals from being introduced to that part of the island. Everything going on the trip was placed into animal and insect-proof containers and sprayed with a non-toxic insecticide 48 hours before the trip; the food for the journey was placed in similar containers or frozen for 72 hours before going to ensure that no invertebrates or viable seed material would be taken along unknowingly. So, most of a day was spent preparing for and getting everything through the quarantine.

This part of my trip wasn't all that photo-worthy, so I have included a few 'action shots' taken by one of my classmates.

Snorkeling in Spanish is Esnorkeling

You can´t work all day everyday, at least not in a place like the Galapagos. Or at least that´s what I told myself a few days ago in Isabela. After days of work with farmers and guava, my classmates (and advisor Steve - that´s us in the picture) and I decided to explore a place called the ´Tunules´. The area is right off the southern coast of Isabela Island and was created when liquid magma from the nearby volcano (Cerro Azul) flowed toward the coast below. As the lava made its way toward the coast the outer portion hardened while lava continued to flow - resulting in hardened tubes of lava that are hollow inside and extend into the ocean. Over time the tubes have eroded from the ocean water and elements, leaving a fantastic place to snorkel.

We paid for a part-day tour of the tunules, which includes a 45 minute boat ride to the location, some hiking around the area, and then some snorkeling time. Even from the hike we could see green sea turtles, blue footed boobies, and manta rays. I am always amazed by the animals here and how diverse they are...none of them are boring and I never get tired of seeing them.


The snorkling was great, although it always makes me a little nervous at first. I always have to get used to being partially under the water and breathing normally. I got caught up in a small school of brightly colored fish at one point and felt like I was in a giant tropical fish tank. The only thing that kept me from staying in the water long was that despite my wetsuit, I was freezing cold. The water is so cold that it attracts beautiful fish and marine animals, but it was enough to make me loose the feeling in my fingers. I thought that sitting in the sun would be a good way to warm up, but that just led to a slight sunburn. I guess that´s the price you pay for such a fun day!

Amy Versus the Volcano

After talking with farmers on Isabela Island for a few days, my classmates and I (along with our advisor) did some work in the same area, but this time inside the Galapagos National Park. We were working on the slopes of the Sierra Negra Volcano, so I got to see my first ever crater and lava flows. That´s us in the photo walking along the trail that borders the crater. It was amazing and I was so excited, but I kept thinking of the movie "Joe Versus the Volcano" (starring Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan) . That´s where the title for this blog entrycomes from...except that in my version the volcano doesn´t errupt and there aren´t natives with a love for Orange Crush. Just more guava.

The views from Sierra Negra are amazing - both inside the crater and looking out at the rest of the island. The volcano last errupted in 2005 (a little too recent if you ask me), and it was evident where the hot gases from the last erruption killed some of the vegetation on the edge of the crater. This particular area is interesting to us not because of the amazing geologic activity or the stunning views, but because the area is covered by guava. We have used a satellite image of the area from 2004 to map the distribution of guava - both in the agricultural zone and within the boundary of the park. But, you can´t trust everything the image gives you, so its always a good idea to collect data on the ground about what you´re interested in and then match that to the maps you´ve made. As we found this week, its almost easier to describe the areas on the volcano that aren´t covered by guava than to describe where it is.

A park guard who works for the Galapagos National Park was nice enough to accompany us for a couple of days to collect data about the location of guava on the volcano. The dog in the photo belonged to a friend of his, but decided to come along for the hikes we did. Luckily for us there is a road that leads from the town of Puerto Villamil (where we stayed each night), though the agricultural area, and up to a ranger hut near the crater; in total its a 45 minute drive from the hotel to the hut. Unfortunately, there is a lot of walking involved in collecting ground data so my legs are still a bit tired at this point from walking so much.

Our data collection went well and we were able to see many of the different ecological zones along the volcano´s slopes. The humid zone is dominated by really tall guava that grow quickly because there is ample moisture, light, and its not too hot or cold. At higher elevations its cold enough that the guava trees are much shorter and don´t seem to be so densely packed. And then there are places on the volcano where its so dry that even the guava can´t really survive for long. I really liked the lava fields where big chunks of lava were thown in among trees and other plants. Hopefully once we get home we can put all of our data together to improve our maps, which could be useful for monitoring changes in the landscape over time.

(And as always, lots of pictures of me with a GPS unit. At some point I´ll have to add photos of me doing something else. Silly geographers!)

Farmers and Guava

Although there are thousands of images of the Galapagos, and there are countless books about the "Enchanted Islands", most of them don´t really include the people who live on the islands. On Saturday and Sunday I spent some time interviewing some of the original colonists of Isabela Island. Most of them reside within the agricultural zone (which is separate from the Galapagos National Park), a place designated for limited farming and ranching. Particular plants and animals are prohibited within the human use areas because they can become invasive (out of control) and often threaten native species or those found nowhere else in the world.

Guava is one of the plants that has become a big problem in the Galapagos because it is an invasive species. Guava was likely introduced to the islands in the early 1900s because its fruits were popular on the mainland of Ecuador, where people in the Galapagos were coming from. Now the trees have spread across the agricultural areas in Isabela and even into the national park in the southern part of the islands. All of the farmers I spoke with definately feel like Guava is a problem, but they often can´t clear the land quickly enough to control the plant from spreading across their farms because their cattle and horses are eating the fruit and spreading the seeds. Even birds have a hand in dispersing the plants.

In the protected areas of the national park, the park rangers spend much of their time trying to control Guava. However, they often don´t have the manpower to control the plant because it easily regrows from the roots if you cut the trunk. To remove the plant completely requires removing the roots which can be expensive and time consuming, or burning the fields but this means they have to cultivate grass and other trees instead. No one here seems to have a good solution at the moment for controlling the plant and the farmers are worried that it could force them from their farms, or at least make their lives a bit harder. Its unfortunate that despite all the attention the islands get for their unique biodiversity, one of the biggest threats doesn´t get much attention or funding.

FYI...the photo above is me taking a GPS (global positioning system) position in an old guava forest. There are guava trees in the background and some native ferns and grasses growing below.

No Internet? No Way!

This afternoon I will head to Isabela Island, one of the youngest and westernmost islands in the archipelago of Galapagos. Its a beautiful island that has much fewer tourists than Santa Cruz (where I am now and where this photo is from), but the downside is that there is no internet during the weekends. Its sad when you are so dependent on email that you can´t believe a place wouln´t have internet access all the time. Thank goodness for the cell phone I bought in Quito! I wouldn´t want to be without some form of communication...

It has been really hot in Santa Cruz the last few days, and I am sure it will be the same in Isabela. Because most of the islands are volcanic, the climate can vary a lot depending on whether you are right at the coast (where I am now in the city of Puerto Ayora) or if you are in the highlands (where I will be working on Isabela). The near coast areas tend to be warm and sunny most of the year, while the highlands can be cloudy and cool because of the higher elevation around the volcanoes. I am hoping there is a reason I brought those long sleeve shirts!

It looks like everything is set up for my classmates and advisor to take their trip to Alecdo Volcano when we return from the agricultural areas on Isabela Island. Alcedo is actually also on Isabela Island, but they have to return to Santa Cruz first in order to complete the quarantine process with all of their equipment before they can go.

But for this first trip to Isabela, we will be trying to speak with farmers about their reasons for moving to the Galapagos, how they feel the islands have changed, and whether they are likely to stay in the future. We are also going to talk with them about invasive plant species like Guava (a really popular fruit in Ecuador that you can even find in the United States) and how the introduction of these plants is making it difficult for them to continue to farm. Guava is spread by cattle, horses and birds who eat the fruit in one location and spead the seeds to surrounding areas when they deficate. So even farmers that work hard to keep Guava off of their properties have a hard time controlling the plants when their neighbors don´t so the same, or when they abandon their farms and move to the cities. We are also going to map some of the locations where these Guava trees exist so that we can map them more quickly and easily in the future with satellite imagery.

Well, time to get on the boat to Isabela! It takes about two hours to get there by speedboat (it runs daily between Santa Cruz and Isabela), so I hope the seas are calm and the view is nice.

Texas in Ecuador

I didn´t realize that if I wanted to see Texas all I had to do was go to Ecuador. Sunday night in Quito my classmate and I had dinner at a restaurant named the Texas Ranchhouse. The waiter was playing the part of a Texan...complete with a cowboy hat. The menu featured texas chili, onion rings, and every type of steak you could image. There was even a set of hats and horse saddles hung on the wall. So, being a Texan myself, I was compelled to have my photo taken in front of the fireplace where the saddle was hanging. The meal was pretty good, but I stuck with a cream of mushroom soup just to be safe.

On Thursday we made it safely to Santa Cruz Island in the Galapagos. Even though its been over a year since we´ve been here, getting off the plane felt oddly familiar. I had no problem remembering the series of steps it takes to get from Quito to the airport in the glapagos. Get on plane in Quito and fly to the city of Guyaquil. Wait for more passengers in Guyaquil and then take off for Galapagos. Land on Baltra island (which was once a US military base). Get off plane and pay $100 park entrance fee. Take bus to canal. Cross canal in a small boat. Take a cab from the canal to the town of Puerto Ayora. Check into hotel. And then pass out from exhaustion. Well, something like that.

The hotel we´re staying in is pretty nice and even has airconditioning. This is the end of the wet season which is usually really warm but with afternoon showers. I am already a little sunburnt just from walking to and from meetings because somehow I forgot that the sun is a lot stronger at the Equator than at home.

My classmate and I have been really busy since we got here. Constant meetings to arrange our trips to another island to do some research. They have had problems with invasive plant species, so there are very strict rules about what materials we can transport between islands. My classmates and advisor are taking a trip (just as I leave to come home) for an unihabited area to see how the vegetation has changed since feral goats were erradicated last spring. Since they are camping overnight, there are strict rules about how they must freeze all of there food and quarantine their equipment and clothes at least 48 hours in advance to prevent them from transporting insects or seeds to the campsite where they could become invasive. There are really good reasons for all of these things we have to do, but it takes time. I have had to help with translating between english and spanish, so I am getting to practice speaking more spanish than I am used to. But its good for me.

Hopefully everything will be ready for us to head to Isabela Island on Friday to start doing some field work!