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Parasites
kill Darwin´s Finches (December 18, 2002)
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BirdLife
International announced what they said could become a serious threat
to the survival of one of the most important bird species of the archipelago.
BirdLife International is a non-profit organization, dedicated to the conservation of birds throughout the world. |
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| In
an investigation, published in an ornithology magazine, Ibis, BirdLife
discovered a previously unknown parasite, on the archipelago. This
is a larva of a fly which attacks the small chicks of the Darwin Finch.
The Darwin Finch is a small dark of grey colored little bird, some
7 cm high approximately. This bird was one of the main inspirations
for Charles Darwin’s theory of evolution by natural selection.ship
crashed, Santa Cruz and Santa Fe islands.
The study involved
7 out of the total 13 different species of finches found on the
archipelago. Larvae of the fly were found in the finches nests. Birgit Fessl,
from the Konrad Lorenz Institute said there is a need to make a
complete evaluation of this situation to estimate the real threat
to the finch species survival. The Galapagos
National Park Service Director, Elieser Cruz, said this investigation
hasn’t been confirmed, and the Charles Darwin Foundation
is going to monitor the nests of the finch species in all of the
islands. BirdLife´s
study took place in Santa Cruz Island exclusively; there is no data
about what is happening on the other islands. Some Finches are unique
and endemic to some specific islands. Fernando Espinoza,
Director of the Charles Darwin Research Station, doesn’t
agree with BirdLife´s approach, and says there is no evidence
to think that the finches are in danger. |
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Source: www.elcomercio.com www.bbc.co.uk |
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| Related
Topics:
Darwin´s Finch and the Theory of Evolution GO2 |
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| Links:
A complete article
about . |
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