“Imps of Darkness” roaming the Galapagos

Did you know that Jurassic Park is actually located in the Galapagos islands?  Okay, maybe not… but these iguanas sure do look like dinosaurs.  From a distance they look harmless, cute even.  It’s when you’re up close and in their face that you realize just how creepy they are.  Charles Darwin was not impressed.  It actually sounded like he hated the marine iguanas, referring to them as hideous-looking “imps of darkness”.

While visiting the Galapagos we were able to see three types of iguanas: the land iguana, the marine iguana, and a hybrid of the two.  Some of these iguanas can live up to 60 years (bet Darwin didn’t like that fact)!  The marine iguanas are built for the ocean and even have glands that expel salt water.  They’ll often rest up in the early morning and wait for the sun to come out.  Once it’s warm enough, they’ll dip into the water and begin searching for their meals of seaweed and algae.

Check out our video of Galapagos iguanas below and let us know which one is your favorite.  For me, I’m going to have to side with Darwin- they’re just a little too scary for my taste.