Straddling the Equator,
600 miles off the western coast of South America
lies a special world.
Here, more than a century and a half ago
a young British naturalist, Charles Darwin,
encountered the community of creatures
unlike any others on the face of the Earth.
The insights he gained from his voyage
to this remote corner of the globe
would forever change our view of the natural world.
Today, scientists aboard the R/V (research vessel) Seward Johnson
retrace the journey of Charles Darwin
to the fabled Galapagos Islands.
It's the expedition of a lifetime for marine biologist Carole Baldwin
from the Smithsonian Institution,
whose interest in these islands
reaches back to her first reading of Darwin's journals.
I've always dreamed of coming here
to see what Darwin saw
and to continue the work he began.
And now, using the tools of modern science and technology,
we can go where he could never go
to explore world he could only imagine.
Arriving with Carole is a team of scientists
whose areas of interests range from birds and reptiles
to deep sea fish;
their mission - to add to our understanding
of how life has evolved on these islands,
and in relatively unexplored waters
off their shores.
Rocky outpost in the vast Pacific,
the Galapagos bear testament to a volcanic birth
and to natural forces
that continually reshaped their features,
creating fresh footholds for life.
Compared to the age of the Earth
these islands are young.
Thrust up from the floor of the sea
over the past few million years
they suggest the land
that is still in the process of creation.
It was 1835 when Darwin climbed up here from the shore
to get a closer look at this strange landscape.
'Nothing,' he wrote in his journal
'could be less inviting at first appearance.'
And when you've hiked for an hour
over these rivers of frozen lava
you do start to wonder how anything could possibly live here.
Then, suddenly,
something moves.
With Ecuadorian naturalist Mathias Espinosa
Dr Baldwin charts a course of the expedition.
More than 20 islands make up the Galapagos Archipelago.
As part of Ecuador
they are a sanctuary for species
whose ancestors arrived here
by wind and sea from the distant mainland.
There are lots of underground caves on the island.
These caverns and tunnels,
which solidified around streams of molten lava,
are good places to look for fossils.
But for someone who is at home in a wetsuit, mask and fins
cave exploration is a real challenge.
"Wow, it's really beautiful in here"
But the inside of the tunnel
is as beautiful as a great cathedral.
It is scare feeling
to be scrambling around in the place
where the roof can collapse any minute.
"Watch your steps because some rocks are loose, you know" "Yeap"
"Are you OK?" "Yeap"
The remains Carole and Mathias find,
the ancient bones of small birds and rodents,
offer evidence of ongoing changes of species
and may shed light on why some vanished,
while others continued to thrive.
Found nowhere else on Earth,
the Giant Galapagos tortoise
is one of the island's survivors.
Built like a half-ton tank,
the hefty reptile may not win any races,
but he could live over a hundred years.
Darwin's discovery that tortoises on different islands
have distinctly different shells
was one of the key observations
that led him to propose
the theory of evolution by natural selection,
a concept that would revolutionize biology.
When we compare the shells of these tortoises,
the differences are really obvious.
This one with its low dome shell
feeds near the ground,
while the ones with the high arch shells
can munch the leaves others can't reach.
Darwin realised that both of these tortoises
evolved from a single species
that washed upon these shores
millions of years ago.
In the same way,
a single species of finch
that arrived here on the wind
led, in time, to thirteen different species,
each with its own distinctive beak.
As with the tortoises,
natural selection shaped their beaks for special functions.
Bigger beaks crack the heavy seeds,
and more slender bills probe for tiny insects.
In the thousands of years since their ancestors arrived
the Galapagos cormorants have lost their ability to fly.
With no natural predators to threaten them
the birds can nest in safety on these shores.
Over long generations
strong wings, once vital for escape,
gave way to short stubby ones
- more energy efficient
and useful for steering when swimming after fish.
The Galapagos land iguana
is another old creature found nowhere else on Earth,
a lizard whose favourite food is the fruit
of the giant prickly pear cactus.
The cactus's tree-like form
may have evolved as its defense.
Taller stemmed plants were beyond the reach of hungry reptiles.
And, as a result, were more likely to survive
and reproduce.
In this way animals and plants shape one another.
And the natural environment shapes them both.
For biologists like Dr. Baldwin
the isolation of these islands is a powerful lure,
a place where the processes and results of evolution
may be more easily observed.
Where the land meets the sea in the Galapagos
tide pools are plentiful.
And they make a perfect playground
for young sea lions.
In these sheltered nurseries
pups can frolic,
free from the sharks and other predators
that wait for them in the deeper waters off shore.
Nearly every creature here depends on sea for its food.
That is especially true for the marine iguanas
- the dragon-like lizards
that Darwin called "the imps of darkness."
As a marine biologist,
I am fascinated by the adaptations of these amazing reptiles.
Unlike other lizards,
they've evolved the ability to take advantage of the resources of both the sea and the land.
It's believed that land dwelling iguanas
reached these islands by riding on floating mats of vegetation,
or by island hopping across fragments of land that are now submerged.
Almost invisible amid the black lava rocks where they bask,
the descendants of those first pioneers
evolved the sooty grey hides that help them soak up the sun's heat
before they set off into the cold coastal waters to feed.
Each day, when their body temperatures have risen
the iguanas turn their attention to the sea
and, like an alien army,
they abandon their posts on the rocks
and march into the waves to feast on the seaweed
that grows off the shore.
Equally at home in two worlds,
the amphibious lizards prosper
in the wild Galapagos,
where they state their claim
as some of the islands' best surfing spots.
The Galapagos Islands are merely the tip of the iceberg,
or more properly,
the volcano.
And very little is known of the wonders that lie underwater.
Here, in the world that Darwin saw
only through the window of a glass-bottomed bucket
the real work of the marine biologist begins.
The first thing you notice down here
is the extraordinary abundance of marine life.
The currents bring both cold and warm water species to the islands
and they all benefit from the nutrients that well up from the deep.
We also can't help noticing
how tame all the creatures seem to be.
Just as on land,
the underwater inhabitants,
like the inquisitive sea lions,
have little fear of humans
and they seem to enjoy distracting me from my work.
As comfortable as I am in the water,
when I see a big shark, my first reaction is fear.
Though shark attacks on humans are rare
it pays to be wary.
Sharks aren't known for their keen eyesight
and in this murky water
they might just mistake me for something they'd like to eat.
Hammerhead sharks swim in huge numbers around these islands.
Although they come close
it's clear they're no threat to me.
And as I watch them
I become intrigued,
wondering how their ugly shaped heads evolved.
We do know that their heads contain sensors
that pick up electromagnetic fields.
This sixth sense may help the sharks locate their prey
But, whatever their secret, it's working.
They've been around for millions of years
while lots of other species have gone extinct.
In the sea, as on land,
it's "eat or be eaten,
adapt and survive
and pass on your genes to the next generation."
Scientists like Carole Baldwin
have only begun to probe the many marvels and mysteries
that lurk in these waters.
The diversity of sea life is dazzling.
But the same forces that work on the land
have shaped each creature here
to survive in its own unique way.
While some hunt for fish in the open waters,
others, like the stingray,
use camouflage to hide from predators,
or to surprise their prey.
Observing what's here is just a part of Carole's work,
collecting specimens for study is another.
Each tiny fish that she takes home
may add to our understanding of natural selection
and the interconnectiveness of life in the sea.
The marine ecosystem of the Galapagos
is enriched by mineral laden gases
continuously released by active vents on the ocean floor,
a sign that the islands are still under construction.
The lava rocks that litter the sea floor
are the home to one of the least alluring of the Galapagos creatures
- the spotted moray eel.
The snake-shaped fish has a mouth full of needle-sharp teeth
and powerful jaws that can snap with the force of a bear trap.
I've met morays before
and they're usually shy and secretive.
But there's something very different about these morays...
Morays, like sharks, have poor eyesight
but an excellent sense of smell.
I wonder:
Is it the fishes I've collected in my net that interests them?
Or is it me?
I'm not about to stick around to find out.
With her shallow water collecting completed
Dr. Baldwin returns to the ship,
where the most exciting
and risky part of her mission gets on the way
- the exploration of the deep waters of the Galapagos Islands
in the Johnson Sea-Link submersible.
Capable of descending to a depth of 3000 feet
the sub can take scientists into worlds
that still today remain veiled in mystery.
This is to be Carole's first sub dive,
a daunting prospect for anyone.
It's a little unnerving
when the last link to the ship is released
and you leave the surface behind.
I guess it's the way
it must feel to be an astronaut in a space capsule.
You don't know whether you'd be excited
or terrified...
I can't help thinking:
one small crack in the sub's plastic sphere
and it's all over.
But then I remember how privileged I am to be here
Every dive on the sub is a voyage into the unknown...
into a world
that a generation ago we could only dream about,
and could never really hope to see.
When we start to consider
that less than one percent
of the world's ocean floor's been explored
you realise that we may know more about our space
than we do about our planet.
It's no exaggeration to say
that the deep sea is the Earth's last great frontier.
At the depth of 300 feet
the sub descends beyond the range of traditional scuba gear.
The sub's lasers frame at remote controlled cameras
and its robot arm is made ready
to collect living specimens
to bring back to the ship for studying.
The sub has a whole toolbox of devices
for picking up deep sea dwellers.
But we limit our collecting
to the ones that are new and important to our research.
The first catch of the day,
a peculiar fish with the leg-like fins,
rides in the craft's collection bucket.
Next to be whisked the board
- an unusual eel.
But not all those who were chosen
prove to be cooperative.
Your first impression of the bottom
is of another world...
But when you switch on the lights
and reach into the darkness
you discover that there's lots of life down here.
You've just got to know where to look.
I hate to leave the bottom
with the whole world down here waiting to be discovered
but it's a long slow ride to the surface
- thirty minutes from 3000 feet.
And we've got work to do aboard the ship.
The dive has been an incredible high
and I can't wait to see up close
the amazing things we've collected.
"Hey, John! Come look at this jell-o nose."
"What do you have there?" "Look at that! That's ..."
Each new species will be carefully studied by scientists
that is Smithsonian and other institutions around the world.
And together we will try to find answers to the questions about
how they swim and feed and reproduce.
And how their special adaptations help them survive
in the deep waters where they live.
I have a real fascination of everything we've found
and it's an unbelievable experience
to hold in my hands a creature
that, until now, no-one has ever seen alive.
All of us on the team share a tremendous respect
for these sea creatures.
And for the strategies they've evolved to survive in the cold dark world
where we wouldn't last a minute.
It was many years after Charles Darwin returned from the Galapagos
before he arrived at his profound conclusions
about the evolution of life on Earth.
In their own way,
the new species Carole Baldwin collected
are as weird and wonderful
as any that Darwin encountered.
And in time, like the finches, tortoises and iguanas on the land
they, too, may yield clues that will help to explain
the secrets of their success.
An observation Darwin jotted in his journal in 1835
is as true today as it was then.
"These islands," he said
"seem to be a little world within themselves
- a perennial source of new things."
For my colleagues and me the work is only beginning
and it may be years
before our studies will reveal
the role that each of these deep water dwellers
plays in the world of the sea.
But we know that they all have secrets they can teach us.
The unique creatures of the Galapagos Islands
and their surrounding waters
share an important and vulnerable place
in the great web of life on our planet.
Scientists now know
that evolution is an ongoing process
and that living things everywhere
are constantly changing,
adapting,
and giving rise to new forms.
I was leaving the Galapagos
with far more that I'd hoped to find here.
With my co-workers
we discovered at least a dozen new species,
including some that might have come and gone
from the Earth without ever being seen alive.
My imagination had been fired by this magical place
As Darwin knew long before me,
and as new generations of naturalists will discover,
the quest to unlock life's secrets
is an adventure
that will never end.
Bill Raisner was an ultralight pilot. Noel Archambault was an IMAX stereographer. They were killed when their ultralight crashed near the top of Cerro Azul, on Isabela Island (one of the Galapagos)