Once in a Lifetime…the Galápagos Islands
by Evan Morrison, senior marine science and biology major
My experience with the UGalápagos program was completely different from anything I’ve ever done before. It gave me a fantastic cultural and practical experience in my own major.
In the Galápagos I lived with a local host family, and a big focus of the program was getting to spend “family time” like a local which included doing things like going to the beach, hiking, and snorkeling. I was able to get a ton of practice with my very rusty Spanish, and am now a lot more confident with the language.
Classes were intensive and immersive, with only one class being taken at any time. We usually spent the morning in the classroom and the afternoon on a field trip of some sort, and working on our own self-designed projects. The classes covered almost every facet of life and science of the Galápagos, including the cultural and socio-economic layout of the islands, terrestrial zoology, marine ecology, conservation, and volcanic geology of the islands.
Some of my most memorable projects were studying how giant tortoises at a breeding center have been conditioned to their feeding schedule, and studying how different environmental factors affect the aggressive behavior of damselfish. I also studied how El Niño, a major climate event, was affecting sea lion populations and interviewed locals to learn about the state of education on the islands. These projects were invaluable to enriching my studies.
The islands themselves were also like nothing I’d ever seen before. I saw my first octopus, climbed an active volcano and felt the steam coming out of the cooled lava tubes, and snorkeled with sea lions and giant manta rays. I had one of the best experiences of my college career there, and can’t wait to plan my next trip back!
