Our small group of humans simply settled to the ground, amazed. Subtract the whirring of camera shutters, and this was the Galapagos as Darwin described it. We were picking our way from marker to marker, eyes glued to the frozen sea of lava underfoot, when the ground in front of us dropped away and we found ourselves perched at the rim of a secret, rush-fringed pool. In its waters two flamingos placidly shucked mud with their bills. For once my companions left their cameras at their sides and simply stared.
Rats eat undefended eggs and defenseless young.
Goats devour vegetation, driving native plants to extinction, depriving native animals such as the Galapagos giant tortoise of food and vital shade. Blackberry and guava march up hillsides like kudzu. Island by island, we are making progress. There are no goats on Pinta now, almost no pigs on Santiago. Equally important, she pointed out, is preventing new invaders from gaining a toehold.