Giant Tortoises

No visit to the Galapagos would be complete without seeing giant tortoises. On the island of Santa Cruz we had our chance to see them in the wild and later at the Charles Darwin research center. I loved seeing them in the wild, just lumbering along at their very slow pace, munching grass as they went. These creatures weigh up to 500 pounds and live more than 150 years. There are currently eleven species of giant tortoises. At one time there were more than thirty different species, but people have made life difficult for the tortoise. The most noticeable difference is the shape of their shells. Some are domed, others are saddle backed. These differences were among the observations that helped Darwin to conceive of his theory of evolution and the survival of the fittest.





According to the shipboard naturalist, we can all learn some very important life lessons from observing the tortoise. This the list.
1.Eat you vegetables.
2.Get a minimum of eight hours sleep every night.
3.Slow down and reduce stress.
4.Have sex for at least four hours every day.