ECUADOR

ECUADOR.

Centennial of Charles Darwin's Visit to the Galápagos Islands, 1835-1935.
Map of Galápagos Islands.
First stamp in a set of 6, issued on 01.03.1936.
Face value: 2 cents of Ecuadorian sucre.
Printing: Recess.
Print: 1,000,000 copies.
Size: 25 x 29 mm.

Catalogues
- Michel No. 346.
- Scott No. 340.
- StampWorld No. 348.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 519.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 332.

The Galápagos archipelago is made up of thirteen large islands with a surface area greater than 10 km², nine medium islands with an area of ​​1 km² to 10 km² and another 107 small islets, in addition to rocky promontories of a few square meters, distributed around of the equatorial line. It is the second largest marine reserve on the planet and was declared a World Heritage Site in 1978 by UNESCO. The islands were formed 5 million years ago as a result of tectonic activity on the seabed; the archipelago is one of the most active volcanic groups in the world. The Galápagos Islands are known for their numerous endemic species and for the studies of Charles Darwin, who visited the archipelago in 1835, that led him to establish his theory of evolution through natural selection.

The Galápagos Islands were discovered by chance on March 10, 1535, when the ship in which the Bishop of Panama Fray Tomás de Berlanga was traveling to Peru deviated from its route.

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Thanks to R. Gómez-Val for his contribution.