Lying in the Pacific dry belt most of the land in the archipelago is covered by arid, semi-desert xerophytic vegetation. Only a small percentage of the islands reach the higher elevations where more rainfall is concentrated, yielding a more lush, tropical vegetation types.
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What kind of habitat is the Galapagos Islands?
There are five types of habitat zones in Galapagos: marine, shore, arid, transition and humid. Within these five broad categories, there are a number of different habitats.
Is Galapagos a tropical island?
Galapagos is on the Equator but the weather is not tropical. Temperatures range from 69°-84°F / 21°-30°C. Warm season is from January to June. Dry season is from July to December.
What climate zone is the Galapagos Islands?
Galapagos Weather and Climate
The Galapagos Islands are on the equator and the climate does not vary dramatically over the year. The climate of the Islands can best be described as subtropical.
Why is Galapagos not tropical?
The weather of the Galápagos Islands is influenced by three main ocean currents and, to a lesser extent, by four other ocean currents.The cold Humboldt and Cromwell currents cool the Galápagos Islands, and keep them from being the tropical islands one would expect to find at the equator.
What kinds of plants are endemic to the Galapagos Islands?
Three types of endemic cacti dominate the landscape here; lava, candelabra, and prickly pear, the staple diet of land iguanas and giant tortoises.
What tectonic plate is the Galapagos Islands on?
Nazca tectonic plate
Galapagos is located on the Nazca tectonic plate.
This perpetually moving plate is heading eastward over the Galapagos hot spot and has formed the chain of islands.
What is the geography of the Galapagos Islands?
The Galapagos Islands are formed of lava piles and dotted with shield volcanoes, many of which are periodically active. The striking ruggedness of the arid landscape is accentuated by high volcanic mountains, craters, and cliffs.
Are the Galapagos Islands north or south of the equator?
The Galápagos, however, actually straddle the equator. While most of the land mass is south of the equator, a small part of the island of Isabela, and a few other islands, technically lies in the Northern Hemisphere.
What type of islands are the Galapagos Islands quizlet?
the Galapagos islands are volcanic in origin and several volcanoes in the west of the archipelago are still very active, especially those on Isla Fernandina, Isla Isabela and Isla Santiago. You just studied 22 terms!
What is the weather and climate in the Galápagos Islands?
It has a tropical climate with an average of 29°C and water temperature of around 25.5°C on average. The warmer months are followed by coolers months from June to November.With low levels of precipitation, the cooler months are also known as the dry season in the Galapagos Islands.
What is the weather like in the Galápagos Islands in February?
February is one of the rainiest months and is considered the wet season on the Galápagos Islands.Warm temperatures are still at their peak during the month, and you can expect sunny weather with daily temperatures of approximately 80-85 °F.
What is the geographical importance of the Galápagos Islands?
Repeated volcanic eruptions helped to form the rugged mountain landscape of the Galápagos Islands. The Galápagos are best known for their diverse array of plant and animal species. Many species are endemic, which means they are not found anywhere else in the world.
What is unique about Galapagos Islands?
The Galapagos Islands are uniquely located on both sides of the equator in both the Northern and Southern Hemispheres. The islands are situated at a point in the Pacific Ocean where three ocean currents collide, creating a unique area in the sea where warm and varying degrees of cold water meet.
What wildlife is in the Galapagos Islands?
The best known are the Galapagos giant tortoise, land iguana and lava lizard. At sea, one finds Galapagos penguins, marine iguanas, fur seals, sea lions, whales, sharks, marine turtles and many fish species. The archipelago is also home to some of the world’s largest colonies of seabirds.
Does it snow in Galapagos?
On average, February is the wettest month with 4.33 inch (110.0 mm) of precipitation.On average, September is the driest month with 0.31 inch (8.0 mm) of precipitation.
What is the vegetation like in the Galapagos Islands?
Many visitors to Galapagos are surprised to be greeted by desert-like vegetation—most are expecting a continuation of the lush greenery they witnessed on mainland Ecuador. In fact, the majority of the archipelago’s land area is covered by the brown and grey vegetation often found in deserts.
What animals and plants live in the Galapagos Islands?
Galapagos is famous for its high number of endemic species such as the Galapagos giant tortoise, marine iguana, daisy trees and the Galapagos penguin. Often, introduced species can present a major threat to native and endemic species. Use the species index tab or the species hub to discover more wildlife of Galapagos.
How did plants get to the Galapagos?
BY AIR. Wind is thought to have played a major role in transporting spores of the lower-form plants, such as ferns, mosses, and lichens, to the Galapagos Islands.The weaker-flying land birds and bats (2 species) likely arrived with the help of the wind.
Is the Nazca plate convergent or divergent?
The Nazca plate is an oceanic tectonic plate in the southeastern Pacific Ocean that shares both convergent and divergent boundaries, corners multiple triple junctions, contains three seamount chains, overrides four hotspots, and is responsible for the creation of the Andean orogeny (Figure 1).
Which natural process created the Galapagos Islands quizlet?
How did the Galapagos islands form? Magma pushing up through the earths crust.
