The Galápagos Islands
(official name: Archipiélago de Colón, other
Spanish name: Las Islas Galápagos, part of
the Republic of Ecuador, are an archipelago of volcanic islands distributed on either side of the equator in the Pacific Ocean surrounding the centre of the Western Hemisphere,
906 km (563 mi) west of continental Ecuador. The islands are known
for their large number of endemic species and were studied by Charles Darwin during the second voyage of HMS Beagle.
His observations and collections contributed to the inception of Darwin's theory
of evolution by means of natural selection.
The Galápagos Islands and
their surrounding waters form the Galápagos Province of
Ecuador, the Galápagos National Park,
and the Galápagos Marine Reserve.
The principal language on the islands is Spanish. The islands have a population
of slightly over 25,000.
The new Republic of Ecuador took the islands
from Spanish ownership in 1832, and subsequently gave them official Spanish
names. The islands are found at the coordinates 1°40'N–1°36'S, 89°16'–92°01'W.
Straddling the equator, islands in the chain are located in both the northern
and southern hemispheres, with Volcán Wolf and Volcán Ecuador on Isla Isabela being directly on
the equator. Española Island, the
southernmost islet of the archipelago, and Darwin Island, the northernmost one, are spread out over a
distance of 220 km (137 mi).
The cover posted on August 29, 2016 and i received on September 19, 2016. Ecuador issue beautiful thematic self adhesive stamps related to Galapagos islands every year.
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