Marine Life

The Galapagos Marine Reserve is 133,000 square kilometres and was set up in 1998 to protect the waters around the Galapagos Islands and the many species of animals and fish that live there.

There are so many marine species in Galapagos because of the cold ocean currents that bring rich nutrients for food, and the great variety of habitats: coral reefs, mangrove lagoons, rocky areas and sandy beaches.

Many other species depend on the Galapagos marine life for their food, such as sea birds that eat fish, and the marine iguanas that feed on algae growing on the bottom of the sea.

• An endemic species of fish called the 'four-eyed blenny' lives in rock pools and has specially divided eyes to allow it to see both above and below water.
• A common crab found on rocky shores in Galapagos is the 'Sally Lightfoot crab'. They are bright orange and blue, and skip across the surface of rock pools.
• Until the 1860's, whales were hunted in the waters around Galapagos until there were only a few left, but the hunting has stopped and luckily there are now a great number of whales and dolphins that can be seen there.
• The world's biggest fish is the whale shark and it is sometimes seen in the Galapagos Islands. The whale shark eats only plankton!