Galapagos: A Natural History by Henry Nicholls

This is not a must read if you are going to the Galapagos, but it is a good top ten of the books to read, and it does thoroughly cover what is on offer. In 1832, the 10-year-old Republic of Ecuador claimed sovereignty over the Galápagos and built a modest settlement, but what really put the islands on the map, at least retrospectively, was the five-week visit of Charles Darwin in 1835. As naturalist on the global survey ship HMS Beagle, Darwin noticed astonishing variations between closely related plant and animal species on islands separated by just a few miles of sea and this set his thinking on the path that led to the theory of natural selection, perhaps the most important single scientific idea anyone has ever had. Darwin was among the first Europeans to contemplate the non-human life native to the islands for what it was – rather than as something to exploit. And what an extraordinary upside-down world it was. The largest land animals are reptiles; the largest indigenous mammals are a dozen or so species of small shy creatures known as rice rats. A species of daisy has become a giant tree. Penguins swim in the tropical waters. With pink iguanas and blue-footed boobies there are many amazing things to see. This book introduces and celebrates these wonders and more in seven short chapters covering the geology, ocean life, seabirds, plants, invertebrates, land birds and reptiles of the archipelago. Three more explore the human impact and the hope that Nicholls and others have for the islands' future.