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Philornis downsi, an invasive fly.
Introduced Species Dashboard Galapagos Introduced Species Dashboard
CDF Archive
Our History

Discover the Charles Darwin Foundation, established in 1959 to protect the Galapagos Islands' fragile ecosystem. As the oldest and largest science and conservation organization in the archipelago, our Research Station leads efforts to preserve this unique environment through groundbreaking research and conservation milestones.

Carlos Espinosa-CDF
Visit Galapagos

Travel to the Galapagos Islands and help protect these iconic places. Discover the Charles Darwin Foundation's essential travel tips for responsible tourism.

Pelayo Salinas/CDF
First-ever documented birthing migration of a hammerhead shark

Scientists from the Charles Darwin Foundation’s shark ecology and conservation program and collaborators, have published what is likely the first-ever scientifically recorded birthing migration for the critically endangered scalloped hammerhead shark (Sphyrna lewini).

Juan Manuel Garcia-CDF
Our campus

Inaugurated in 1964 as a base for scientists conducting their research on Galapagos, the Charles Darwin Research Station on Santa Cruz Island welcomes all visitors to discover how our scientific research and conservation actions ensure we safeguard one of the world’s most important natural treasures for future generations.

Tiburones de la Reserva Marina de Galápagos

Field guide for kids to identify sharks of the Galapagos Marine Reserve.

Date:
2019
Language:
Spanish
Teddy Zambrano, Sergio Zanchi, Oscar Cardenas y entire Connie Jean Two crew
Historic Sighting of White shark in Ecuador

Researchers from the Charles Darwin Foundation and the Galapagos National Park have published the first confirmed record of a white shark in Ecuadorian waters. The encounter, roughly ninety kilometers west of Wolf Island and outside the Galapagos Marine Reserve (GMR), marks an unusual sighting of this species in the Eastern Tropical Pacific, where sightings south of Mexico's coastline are exceptionally rare.

Mara Speece/CDF
Facing the Sharks: The Dive That Changed My Life

While diving in Galapagos, Erika De la Cruz encountered a hammerhead shark unlike any she’d seen before—one with a curved spine. What began as a routine dive turned into a groundbreaking scientific discovery. Read her story of wonder, resilience, and the power of observation beneath the waves.