聖克魯斯島屬於科隆群島中第二大島，全省最大的城市阿約拉港就座落在此。1959年，厄瓜多爾共和國將該地區所有尚未殖民化的島嶼全部納入加拉帕戈斯國家公園； 同年並成立查爾斯•達爾文基金會，旨在推動科學研究，確保當地生態環境；1978年，科隆群島被聯合國教科文組織列入《世界自然遺產名錄》；1985年，又被評為世界生物圈保護區；1992年，科隆群島水域被厄瓜多爾政府確認為海洋保護區。國家公園和基金會總部分別設在聖克魯斯島。 

      Santa Cruz Island was the second-largest island in the Galapagos and home to Puerto Ayora, the largest town in the islands. In 1959, the Republic of Ecuador declared all the islands, except areas already colonized, as the Galapagos National Park. In the same year, the Charles Darwin Foundation was founded to promote scientific research and ensure the conservation of the Galapagos. Not until 1978, the Galapagos Islands were designated by UNESCO as a World Natural Heritage Site and 1985, a World Biosphere Reserve. In 1992, the waters surrounding the Galapagos were declared a marine reserve by the Ecuadorian government. The headquarters of both park and foundation were located here.

      We tromped through the undergrowth of the park in extremely hot and humid conditions. In the region of the Highlands, the lush greenery was a perfect place for animals like giant land tortoises to survive and breed. The land tortoises were varied from island to island in terms of species. The genotype was the same, but the phenotype could be different. The "Galapagos" meant to be the giant tortoise island in Spanish.

      “清風無力屠得熱，落日着翅飛上山”。悶熱天氣里參觀加聖克魯斯島的拉帕戈斯國家公園，叫我們倍感辛苦。高地一帶，鬱鬱蔥蔥的原始森林為巨型陸龜──象龜生存和繁衍後代提供了生活保障。科隆群島素以盛產象龜聞名於世，不過島與島之間遺傳基因相同的象龜可能因為環境不同而出現不同的表徵，西班牙語中“加拉帕戈斯”原本就是“巨龜”的意思。

      We followed the first footprint of a giant tortoise that was estimated 96 years old. It had algae covering its own legs probably from bathing in the water. A yellow warbler flew past as we saw a poison apple tree which was one of the world's most dangerous plants. This tree-like apple was a mortal danger because it contained a very dangerous liquid. If you touched, you would have a rash for a whole month. Spanish moss nicknamed as Old Man's Beard grew upon the bigger trees like air plant in the forest. It was an epiphyte which absorbed nutrients and water from the air and rainfall. We finished marching in the woods with a local fruit buffet on a farm prior to our next activity.

      我們追隨的第一隻象龜大概有96歲，它腿上纏滿了綠藻，估計剛在池塘里洗過澡。這時黃鶯從眼前飛過，直奔毒蘋果樹而去。之所以稱它毒蘋果樹，是因為其果汁有毒，倘若你動到它，定會叫你渾身遍生皮疹，一個月不見消退。綽號叫老頭鬍子的西班牙苔蘚隨處可見，像空中飄蕩的植物懸浮在大樹身上。它屬於附生植物，從空氣和降雨中吸收養分。從象龜生活的野林子歸來，我們在一家農莊稍事休息，先從新鮮入時的水果自助餐上挑些可口的食物犒勞一下自己，然後再繼續進行下面的活動項目。

      We continued to have a short and easy hike in the Fausto Llerena Tortoise Center specialized for tortoise's breeding. It was reported that the tortoise center had a long-term program run jointly by the Galapagos National Park and the Charles Darwin Foundation. It began in 1965 to save the giant tortoise population on Pinta Island and was quickly expanded to include other populations, in particular that of Espanola where only 14 individuals remained. As of 2008, more than 4,000 young tortoises from 8 different populations had been repatriated to their island of origin, with nearly 1,500 going back to Espanola. At the Tortoise Center, we observed many tortoises, with their ET necks and faces, from hatchlings to juveniles to large individuals. In general, boys looked cool and girls were hot. The different temperature resulted in the different sexes. Boys tended to be hatched at a low temp of 28.0oC while girls at a high temp of 29.5oC. Obviously, the population between male and female was out of proportion. In order to revive the lost species, the scientists induced more girls than boys.

      接下來，我們來到福斯托•德列雷納繁殖和飼養中心參觀。據報導，該象龜中心長期與加拉帕戈斯國家公園以及查爾斯•達爾文基金會合作，早在1965年，就曾為拯救平塔島象龜存活而進行定向繁殖和人工飼養，後來很快擴大到其它象龜品種，尤其針對西班牙島當時僅存的14只象龜。截至到2008年，從8個不同亞種的象龜配對中培育出4,000多隻後代，並及時將它們遣送原籍。這麼一來，大約1,500只回到了西班牙島。在象龜中心，我們看到大小不一且長有外星人脖子和面孔的象龜。男孩(冷)酷，女娃(熱)辣！就孵化溫度而言，攝氏28.0oC低溫適於男孩出世，而攝氏29.5oC高溫適於女孩降生。象龜世界裡，科學家一向重女輕男，性別比例嚴重失調，其目的在於保障象龜家族千秋萬代後繼有人。

      The Galapagos National Park on Santa Cruz Island was also home to Lonesome George, the last survivor of the distinct Pinta subspecies from Pinta Island. Unfortunately, he passed away on June 24, 2012. His species were disappeared for good. We passed by a "palace" where he used to live. He had a watering hose, a garden, trees, and visitors like us from all over the world. It was anything a tortoise would want. Several other tortoises were there, but none seemed to have the same luxury as his. Lonesome George tried to mate with 2 other female tortoises from different islands, but two eggs they laid in total were never successful and didn't hatch eventually. He died of possibly natural cause over 100 years old, which was pretty old for his type of species.

      “單身漢喬治”之家座落在聖克魯斯島加拉帕戈斯國家公園境內，它是加拉帕戈斯象龜平塔島亞種中最後一隻，遺憾的是，去年2012年6月24日與世長辭，標誌着它所代表的物種從地球上徹底消失滅絕。我們特意趕到其“宮殿”參觀，沖水龍頭、花園綠樹，“四時有不謝之花，八節有長青之草”，一年到頭還有全世界像我們這樣遠渡重洋慕名而來的粉絲，任何烏龜王八夢寐以求的東西，在這裡都可以化為現實。與它為鄰的幾隻象龜住所卻大相徑庭，絲毫沒有一點奢華。“單身漢喬治”曾試圖與其它兩位來自外島的異性象龜交配，雖然先後產過兩個龜蛋，但最終未能如願以償。它大概壽終正寢，自然老死，年紀超過100歲，應該算作同類中比較長壽的一位。

      As I kept walking another mile, the sun got hotter and hotter. Soon, my vision blurred from droplets of sweat. Finally, I uploaded a truck taxi and zipped off to the Municipal Pier. I wish I sat in a passenger seat, not in the truck's trunk, because there wasn't any seatbelts.

    我頭頂烈日，堅持向前挺進一英里路。不大會兒，我汗流滿面，視線也變得模糊起來。“黃鶯也愛新涼好，飛過青山影里啼”。我趕緊登上出租卡車，風馳電掣般沖回市政碼頭。嗨！真後悔當初性急沒坐進駕駛艙里而蜷在敞篷後備箱上，那裡連安全帶都沒有。

      Here, we happily ended our last shore excursion in the Galapagos. 7-day voyage had changed our vision via fauna, flora and ecological habitat. It helped us to understand evolution of "natural selection" and "survival of the fittest" over the long course of generations.

      到此為止，我們滿載喜悅，圓滿結束了科隆群島之旅。七天巡遊中，通過觀摩動物、植物以及與它們息息相關的生態環境，我們審視大自然的視野發生了改變，對漫長生物進化中“物競天擇適者生存”有了更貼切的理解。

(二O一三年四月六日)