", though observations of free-swimming juveniles as small as long in the eastern Pacific suggest that birth size varies geographically. Juvenile sharks remain in shallow water to avoid predation by larger adults. Males mature at long and 6–8 years old, while females mature at long and 7–9 years old. Neither sex is thought to reproduce until 10 years of age. The lifespan of this species is at least 24 years. Inquisitive and persistent, the Galapagos shark is regarded as potentially dangerous to humans. However, several live-aboard boats take divers to Wolf and Darwin, the northernmost Galapagos islands, every week specifically"
"Galápagos Islands The Galápagos Islands (official name: , other Spanish name: , ), 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, 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"
"Galápagos wildlife The Galápagos Islands are located off the west coast of South America straddling the equator. The Galápagos are located at the confluence of several currents including the cold Humboldt Current traveling north from South America and the Panama Current traveling south from Central America make the islands cooler and provide the perfect environment for the unique mix of wildlife that inhabits the islands. These islands are volcanic in origin and were never attached to any continent. Wildlife arrived here in one of three ways: flying, floating or swimming. Where in most environments larger mammals are normally the predators"
"Galápagos wildlife The Galápagos Islands are located off the west coast of South America straddling the equator. The Galápagos are located at the confluence of several currents including the cold Humboldt Current traveling north from South America and the Panama Current traveling south from Central America make the islands cooler and provide the perfect environment for the unique mix of wildlife that inhabits the islands. These islands are volcanic in origin and were never attached to any continent. Wildlife arrived here in one of three ways: flying, floating or swimming. Where in most environments larger mammals are normally the predators"
"both the Water Hemisphere and the Western Hemisphere are in the Pacific Ocean. The equator subdivides it into the North Pacific Ocean and South Pacific Ocean, with two exceptions: the Galápagos and Gilbert Islands, while straddling the equator, are deemed wholly within the South Pacific. Its mean depth is . The Mariana Trench in the western North Pacific is the deepest point in the world, reaching a depth of . The western Pacific has many peripheral seas. Though the peoples of Asia and Oceania have traveled the Pacific Ocean since prehistoric times, the eastern Pacific was first sighted by Europeans"
"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 . The International Hydrographic Organization (IHO) considers them wholly within the South Pacific Ocean, however. The Galápagos Archipelago consists of of land spread over of ocean. The largest of the islands, Isabela, measures and makes up close to three-quarters of the total land area of the Galápagos. Volcán Wolf on Isabela"
"maintains an office in Puerto Ayora, on the island of Santa Cruz. Galápagos Marine Reserve The Galápagos Marine Reserve (GMR) lies a thousand kilometres from the Ecuadorian mainland and covers an area of around . The Galápagos Islands and the surrounding waters represent one of the world’s most unusual ecosystems and are rich areas of biodiversity. Recently granted UNESCO World Heritage Site status, the Galápagos Marine Reserve is the largest marine reserve in a developing country and the second largest reserve in the world. In certain areas in the Galápagos Marine Reserve, it is possible for visitors to dive or"
"Galápagos hotspot The Galápagos hotspot is a volcanic hotspot in the East Pacific Ocean responsible for the creation of the Galapagos Islands as well as three major aseismic ridge systems, Carnegie, Cocos and Malpelo which are on two tectonic plates. The hotspot is located near the Equator on the Nazca Plate not far from the divergent plate boundary with the Cocos Plate. The tectonic setting of the hotspot is complicated by the Galapagos Triple Junction of the Nazca and Cocos plates with the Pacific Plate. The movement of the plates over the hotspot is determined not solely by the spreading"
"Volcanoes of the Galápagos Islands The Galápagos Islands are an isolated set of volcanoes, consisting of shield volcanoes and lava plateaus, located west of Ecuador. They are driven by the Galápagos hotspot, and are between 4.2 million and 700,000 years of age. The largest island, Isabela, consists of six coalesced shield volcanoes, each delineated by a large summit caldera. Española, the oldest island, and Fernandina, the youngest, are also shield volcanoes, as are most of the other islands in the chain. The Galápagos Islands are perched on a large lava plateau known as the Galápagos Platform, which creates a shallow-water"
"Galápagos Marine Reserve The Galápagos Marine Reserve (GMR) lies a thousand kilometres from the Ecuadorian mainland and covers an area of around . The Galápagos Islands and the surrounding waters represent one of the world’s most unusual ecosystems and are rich areas of biodiversity. Recently granted UNESCO World Heritage Site status, the Galápagos Marine Reserve is the largest marine reserve in a developing country and the second largest reserve in the world. In certain areas in the Galápagos Marine Reserve, it is possible for visitors to dive or snorkel, and many guests have come into contact with marvelous aquatic species"
"natural point in Central America at the Isthmus of Rivas at in Nicaragua. In Panama, the Canal cuts through it at 85 ft (26 m). The Divide continues into South America, where it follows the peaks of the Andes Mountains, traversing western Colombia, central Ecuador, western and southwestern Peru, and eastern Chile (essentially conforming to the Chile-Bolivia and Chile-Argentina boundaries), southward to the southern end of Patagonia and Tierra del Fuego. In North America, another, mainly non-mountainous divide, the Laurentian Divide (or Northern Divide), further separates the Hudson Bay-Arctic Ocean drainage region from the Atlantic watershed region. Secondary divides separate"
"adversely affected wildlife in the waters surrounding the islands, as the waters were warmer than normal. Corals and barnacles suffered, hammerhead sharks were driven away, and most of the island's seabirds failed to breed in 1997–98. The mortality rate of marine iguanas rose as the green algae they feed on was replaced by inedible red algae. During the 1982–83 El Niño, 70% of the marine iguanas starved to death because of this. Galápagos Islands The Galápagos Islands (official name: , other Spanish name: , ), part of the Republic of Ecuador, are an archipelago of volcanic islands distributed on either"
"geographers at the Darién watershed along the Colombia-Panama border, placing all of Panama within North America. Alternatively, some geologists physiographically locate its southern limit at the Isthmus of Tehuantepec, Mexico, with Central America extending southeastward to South America from this point. The Caribbean islands, or West Indies, are considered part of North America. The continental coastline is long and irregular. The Gulf of Mexico is the largest body of water indenting the continent, followed by Hudson Bay. Others include the Gulf of Saint Lawrence and the Gulf of California. Before the Central American isthmus formed, the region had been underwater."
"Ballén, who envisioned at tourism as a key activity for the economic and social development of peoples. Compared with the growth of the tourism sector in June 1994, was taken the decision to separate tourism of information, to be devoted exclusively to promote and strengthen this activity. The Galápagos Islands (officially Colón Archipelago) are an archipelago located in the Pacific Ocean 972 km off the coast of Ecuador. It consists of 13 large volcanic islands, 6 smaller islands and 107 rocks and islets, distributed around the line of terrestrial equator. The Galápagos Archipelago is one of the largest scientific and"
"Pacific Ocean lies to the southwest, the Caribbean Sea lies to the northeast, and the Gulf of Mexico lies to the north. Some physiographists define the Isthmus of Tehuantepec as the northern geographic border of Central America, while others use the northwestern borders of Belize and Guatemala. From there, the Central American land mass extends southeastward to the Atrato River, where it connects to the Pacific Lowlands in northwestern South America. Of the many mountain ranges within Central America, the longest are the Sierra Madre de Chiapas, the Cordillera Isabelia and the Cordillera de Talamanca. At , Volcán Tajumulco is"
"Labrador Sea The Labrador Sea (French: ""mer du Labrador"", Danish: ""Labradorhavet"") is an arm of the North Atlantic Ocean between the Labrador Peninsula and Greenland. The sea is flanked by continental shelves to the southwest, northwest, and northeast. It connects to the north with Baffin Bay through the Davis Strait. It has been described as a marginal sea of the Atlantic. The sea formed upon separation of the North American Plate and Greenland Plate that started about 60 million years ago and stopped about 40 million years ago. It contains one of the world's largest turbidity current channel systems, the"
"Caribbean Sea The Caribbean Sea (; ; ) is a sea of the Atlantic Ocean in the tropics of the Western Hemisphere. It is bounded by Mexico and Central America to the west and south west, to the north by the Greater Antilles starting with Cuba, to the east by the Lesser Antilles, and to the south by the north coast of South America. The entire area of the Caribbean Sea, the numerous islands of the West Indies, and adjacent coasts, are collectively known as the Caribbean. The Caribbean Sea is one of the largest seas and has an area"
"Galápagos Province Galápagos () is a province of Ecuador in the country's Insular region, located approximately off the western coast of the mainland. The capital is Puerto Baquerizo Moreno. The province administers the Galápagos Islands, a group of tiny volcanic islands that sit on the equator. The Galápagos Islands have for centuries captured the interest of people from all over the globe because of its unique biodiversity that was made famous by Charles Darwin and his theory of evolution. Ethnic groups as of the Ecuadorian census of 2010: It is estimated that the islands were formed 8 million years ago"
"of the main island, however, and not in the most significant tourist areas. Cuba is an archipelago of islands located in the northern Caribbean Sea at the confluence with the Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic Ocean. It lies between latitudes 19° and 24°N, and longitudes 74° and 85°W. The United States lies 150 kilometers (93 miles) across the Straits of Florida to the north and northwest (to the closest tip of Key West, Florida), and the Bahamas 21 km (13 mi) to the north. Mexico lies 210 kilometers (130 miles) across the Yucatán Channel to the west (to the"
"the eastern slope of the Andean Cordillera of Patagonia into the Magellan Strait through the Azopardo River. It is hemmed in the active tectonic plate (linked to the Magallanes-Fagnano fault) boundary between the South American and Scotia plates. Its East-West orientation in the southern part of Isla Grande de Tierra del Fuego encompasses the national territories of Argentina and Chile; only a small part of the lake lies in Chile. Its evolution is attributed to constant glaciation during the late Pliocene and Pleistocene era. The lake has a total drainage area of with basin elevation ranging from at the lake"
"another option. Caspian Sea The Caspian Sea is the world's largest inland body of water, variously classed as the world's largest lake or a full-fledged sea. It is an Endorheic basin (a basin without outflows) located between Europe and Asia, to the east of the Caucasus Mountains and to the west of the broad steppe of Central Asia. It is bounded by Kazakhstan to the northeast, Russia to the northwest, Azerbaijan to the west, Iran to the south, and Turkmenistan to the southeast. The Caspian Sea is home to a wide range of species and may be best known for"
"Like the others, the island was formed by the Galápagos hotspot. The island is an active shield volcano whose last eruption started on September 4, 2017. The plume for that eruption reached of elevation. Volcanoes of the Galápagos Islands The Galápagos Islands are an isolated set of volcanoes, consisting of shield volcanoes and lava plateaus, located west of Ecuador. They are driven by the Galápagos hotspot, and are between 4.2 million and 700,000 years of age. The largest island, Isabela, consists of six coalesced shield volcanoes, each delineated by a large summit caldera. Española, the oldest island, and Fernandina, the"
"Tierra del Fuego Tierra del Fuego (, ; Spanish for ""Land of Fire"") is an archipelago off the southernmost tip of the South American mainland, across the Strait of Magellan. The archipelago consists of the main island, Isla Grande de Tierra del Fuego, with an area of , and a group of many islands, including Cape Horn and Diego Ramírez Islands. Tierra del Fuego is divided between Chile and Argentina, with the latter controlling the eastern half of the main island and the former the western half plus the islands south of Beagle Channel. The southernmost extent of the archipelago"
"to the northeast of the subducting edge lies the continuous arc of volcanos —also known as the Central America Volcanic Arc— stretching from Costa Rica to Guatemala, and a belt of earthquakes that extends farther north, into Mexico. The northern boundary of the Cocos Plate is the Middle America Trench. The eastern boundary is a transform fault, the Panama Fracture Zone. The southern boundary is a mid-oceanic ridge, the Galapagos Rise. The western boundary is another mid-ocean ridge, the East Pacific Rise. A hotspot under the Galapagos Islands lies along the Galapagos Rise. (""see"" Galapagos hotspot) The Rivera Plate north"
"Isla Guy Fawkes Isla Guy Fawkes (also known as Guy Fawkes Island) is a collection of two crescent shaped islands and two small rocks north-west of Santa Cruz Island, in the Galápagos Islands, which are part of Ecuador. It is uninhabited, but known to be used by scuba divers who amongst other things view the underwater zoanthids near it. William Beebe visited the islands and makes mention of them in his book ""Galapagos: World's End"", he described the cliffs as majestic and made of stratified layers of volcanic tuff. He also noted a population of sealions. The island is perhaps"
"not part of the Old World, there also exist projections which use the 20th meridian west and the diametrically opposed 160th meridian east to define the hemisphere. This projection excludes the European and African mainlands and a small portion of northeast Greenland, but includes more of eastern Russia and Oceania. The center of the Western Hemisphere is located in the Pacific Ocean at the intersection of the 90th meridian west and the Equator, among the Galápagos Islands. The nearest land is Genovesa Island at . The highest mountain in the Western Hemisphere is Aconcagua in the Andes of Argentina at"
"Gulf of Honduras The Gulf or Bay of Honduras is a large inlet of the Caribbean Sea, indenting the coasts of Belize, Guatemala, and Honduras. From north to south, it runs for approximately 200 km from Dangriga, Belize, to La Ceiba, Honduras. The inner Gulf of Honduras is lined by the Belize Barrier Reef which forms the southern part of the 900 km long Mesoamerican Barrier Reef System, the second-largest coral reef system in the world. The Belize Barrier Reef includes a number of small islands, called cays, and collectively known as the Pelican Cays. The Gulf of Honduras is"
"to above sea level and is located on the island of Mindanao. The Galathea Depth in the Philippine Trench is the deepest point in the country and the third deepest in the world. The trench is located in the Philippine Sea. The longest river is the Cagayan River in northern Luzon. Manila Bay, upon the shore of which the capital city of Manila lies, is connected to Laguna de Bay, the largest lake in the Philippines, by the Pasig River. Subic Bay, the Davao Gulf, and the Moro Gulf are other important bays. The San Juanico Strait separates the islands"
"Tehuantepec Ridge The Tehuantepec Ridge is a linear undersea ridge located off the west coast of Mexico in the Pacific Ocean. It is the remnant of an old fracture zone, and not a tectonic spreading center ridge (""see"" mid-ocean ridge). It extends from the eastern end of the Clipperton Fracture Zone northeastward toward Mexico into Chiapas and El Chichón until it is subducted into the Middle America Trench. It lies within the tectonic Cocos Plate, separating the lower and older seafloor of the Guatemala Basin which lies southeast of the ridge from higher and younger seafloor which lies to its"
"with the Caribbean, and by the Panama Canal, built in the 20th century, it is connected to the Pacific. The American Mediterranean Sea drains approximately in North America and Caribbean South America; it is the 2nd largest sea watershed. The watershed depends on South American water bodies such as the Magdalena River with , as well as the Guajira Peninsula and the Gulf of Venezuela. Central American drainages include those of/to the Belize River, Gulf of Honduras, Caratasca Lagoon, Nicaraguan Caribbean Lowlands, and the Colorado River in Costa Rica. In North America, the sea mostly drains by the Mississippi River"
"Atlantic Ocean. In other parts of the world, glaciers start at a height of at least above mean sea level, but due to the size of the ice cap, these glaciers begin at only , sliding down to . Los Glaciares borders Torres del Paine National Park to the south in Chilean territory. Los Glaciares, of which 30% is covered by ice, can be divided in two parts, each corresponding with one of the two elongated big lakes partially contained by the park. Lake Argentino, and the largest in Argentina, is in the south, while Lake Viedma, , is in"
"the Gulf of Mexico in the U.S. and the Sierra Madre de Chiapas in Mexico. On the north, it extends to the Ouachita Highlands of the Interior Low Plateaus and the southern Appalachian Mountains. Its northernmost extent is along the Mississippi embayment (Mississippi Alluvial Valley) as far north as the southern tip of Illinois. To the east the Gulf coastal plain meets the South Atlantic Coastal Plain in southern Georgia along the basin divide between the rivers flowing into the Gulf and those flowing to the Atlantic and south along the Apalachicola River through the Florida panhandle. The flat to"
"Archipelagoes of Patagonia The landmass known as Patagonia hosts a series of archipelagoes, all of them located on its western and southern coast. These archipelagoes, with the exception of Tierra del Fuego and some islands in Argentina's Atlantic Ocean, lie mainly in Chile and in the Pacific Ocean, covering about one third of Chile's coast. The United States Hydrographic Office, stated in its South America Pilot (1916): ""The Patagonian Archipelago, the range of islands lying west of Tierra del Fuego and stretching along the western coast of Patagonia for 11° of latitude north of the western entrance to Magellan Strait,"