Peter Rakauskas
Biomedia Post
Information and link to video:
Date published: N.d.
Published by: National Geographic
Synopsis of Video
This video from National Geographic gives a little insight on the species of the Galápagos Islands. It outlines species such as the marine iguana, which unlike any other lizard on the planet, is a seafaring species. It can hold its breath for up to ten minutes and feeds underwater. The video also talks a small bit about pelicans, penguins, sea lions, and other marine wildlife. Then it concludes with a brief breeding and youth of a Galápagos land iguana. This animal buries its eggs in the warm ash of a volcano, 4,000 feet above sea level.
Relevance to Class
This video fits in perfectly with one of our most recent lessons. We learned a little about the marine iguana, but we mainly learned how the Galápagos are home to many different species, most of which are found no where else on the planet. We learned that Charles Darwin used this observation to help make his theories about natural selection and evolution. The video shows us just what some of those species are, and how different they are from even the closest mainland species. It also mentions a small bit on the food sources of some of these creatures. We studied how the need to reach a food source causes evolution in organisms. That can be seen in the video.
Hi Peter,
ReplyDeleteHow do food sources like plants and trees grow on the remote Galapagos Islands?
Why are the Galapagos Islands' iguanas the only ones that go in the water, as in why aren't there other types of iguanas in the world that do this?
ReplyDeleteWhy did the marine iguanas even need to go in the water in the first place? Why couldn't they survive on land in the Galapagos?
ReplyDeleteIm not sure why exactly, but after doing some research, I found that sea-going is probably an adaptation to better get food, and to stay away from their few natural predators.
ReplyDelete