The Galápagos archipelago is made up of thirteen main islands and more than sixty other islets, rocks and reefs, scattered over four hundred kilometres of open ocean. Sitting at a confluence of four major ocean currents, the islands are actually the summits of vast undersea volcanoes, and are steadily on the march. How has such an odd assortment of life managed to find a footing in this unruly world? Micro-climates and altitude have combined to form discrete environmental zones: perfect habitats for the islands' diverse fauna - marine iguanas, petrels, blue-footed boobies and giant tortoises being but a famous few.
"Paul Stewart's Galápagos will be my treasured companion on my next visit, and I shall take along an extra copy to present to the boat's library. If you are not able to go in person, reading this book and savouring its pictures is, if not a substitute, a delight to be going on with"
– Richard Dawkins, from the foreword