The wealth of marine life makes the Galapagos waters a paradise for divers and snorkelers. Within the 70,000 sq km [27,000 sq mile] Galapagos Marine Reserve more than 300 species of fish have been identified and, with further research, the number is expected to go beyond 400. About 50 of those identified are endemic. With water often as clear as glass, you can see many sorts of colorful tropical fish when you dive. There’s a good chance these will include one or more of about 12 species of sharks which swim in these waters, the most common being the white-tipped reef shark, the black-tipped reef shark, the gray reef shark and the Galapagos shark. In some areas hammerheads and tiger sharks are also common. Fortunately there have been no serious sharks attacks in the Galapagos waters, and the dangerous great white shark is not an inhabitant of the archipelago. Several marine life guidebooks, available in Quito or Puerto Ayora on Santa Cruz, list most of the fish to be seen in the Galapagos.

Commercial fishing is permitted within the archipelago, though illegal fishing threatens the environment. Local and Japanese fishing pirates have seriously depleted shark, lobster and sea cucumber stocks, upsetting established ecosystems. Some islanders see fishing regulations as a threat to their livelihood. In 1995, local fishermen occupied the Charles Darwin Station and threatened to kill tortoises and beat up staff, protesting a government ban on fishing for sea cucumbers and other creatures. The situation was defused by the Ecuadorian military, pressure from the United States.

|Article contributed by Dominic Hamilton|||

|^|to top|