First published: Auckland, New Zealand : D. Bateman, 2009.

"This book is recognized by the Galápagos National Park and the Charles Darwin Foundation as an official publication celebrating their joint 50th anniversary year"--P. preceding t.p.

Includes bibliographical references (p. 238) and index.

Prologue : a world flagship of inspiration / Tui De Roy -- Foreword : Galápagos research, a family tradition / Sarah Darwin -- The Galápagos National Park : half a century dedicated to conservation / Edgar Muñoz -- The Charles Darwin Foundation : history of a science and conservation vision / Peter Kramer -- Islands on the move : significance of hotspot volcanoes / Dennis Geist -- Living water : investigating an elusive element / Noémi d'Ozouville -- Paleoclimate and the future : a knife-edge balance / Julian P. Sachs -- Vertebrate diversity : the long view / David W. Steadman -- Lichen discoveries : bright, bold color specks, tiny and overlooked / Frank Bungartz -- Insular flora : more than 'wretched-looking little weeds' / Conley K. McMullen -- Sunflower trees and giant cacti : vegetation changes over time / Ole Hamann -- On the snails' trail : evolution and speciation among a vanishing tribe / Christine Parent and Guy Coppois -- Inshore fishes : the case of the missing damsel / Jack S. Grove -- Shark migrations : discovering the golden triangle / Alex Hearn -- Giant tortoises : mapping their genetic past and future / Adalgisa Caccone and Jeffrey Powell -- Marine iguanas : life on the edge / L. Michael Romero and Martin Wikelski -- Land iguanas : emergence of a new species / Gabriele Gentile -- Darwin's finches : studying evolution in action / B. Rosemary Grant and Peter R. Grant -- A most unusual hawk : one mother and several fathers / Patricia Parker -- Nazca booby behavior : some evolutionary surprises / Dave Anderson -- The waved albatross : the family affairs of a critically endangered species / Kathryn P. Huyvaert -- Penguins on the equator : hanging on by a thread / Hernan Vargas -- The flightless cormorant : the evolution of female rule / Carlos A. Valle -- Sea lions and fur seals : cold water species on the equator / Fritz Trillmich -- Parasites and pathogens : threats to native birds / Patricia Parker -- Success in biological control : the scale and the ladybird / Charlotte Causton -- Saving 'lost' plants : finding and nurturing the survivors / Alan Tye -- Reign of the giant tortoises : repopulating ancestral islands / Linda J. Cayot and Washington Tapia -- Project Isabela : ecosystem restoration through mega-eradication / Karl Campbell -- Reports from the front : personal accounts from National Park field staff / Wilson Cabrera and Omar Garcia -- A perspective on people and the future : the search for harmony / Graham Watkins -- Reflections : 'Noe reall islands...,' but paradise / Godfrey Merlen.

In this spectacular celebration of one the world's most important domains, insightful essays and fascinating stories by 30 of the world's leading Galapagos researchers describe the challenges and successes of conservation efforts, past and present.