Area Size:  1 Km²
Maximum Altitude:  165 meters / 551 feet
Island Highlights:  Diving, Darwin's Arch, Whale Sharks, Hammerhead Sharks, Galapagos Sharks, Silky Sharks, Blacktip Sharks, Frigatebirds, Red-Footed Boobies, Vampire Finches

Introduction
Darwin Island, named in honour of the archipelagos most illustrious visitor Charles Darwin is situated in the north west of the main Galapagos Island group and is the northernmost island in the Galapagos.  It is among one of the smallest islands in the archipelago, covering just one square kilometre, but in terms of diving, its appeal is enormous.

Due to the fragile environments that exist on Darwin, the national park prohibits any land visits.  Therefore it can only be visited by divers and liveaboard trips.

This premier diving location offers divers fantastic opportunities to dive with the largest marine animals of the Galapagos as well as providing scope for some spectacular underwater photography.

Like its neighbouring Island just 40 km away - Wolf, Darwin has no dry landing sites and remains solely as a diving destination, with its main attractions to be found in its surrounding waters of the Pacific Ocean.  Although the diving here is likely to be challenging, even for the most experienced of divers, the potential rewards are well worth the effort.  For those wishing to dive in the waters around Darwin, it is worth bearing in mind that there are often very big swells and  heavy underwater currents here, consequently divers need to remain vigilant at all times.

Famed as being one of the best diving locations in the World, Darwin has a multitude of fascinating marine life, just waiting to be explored, much of which can be experienced all year round.  Divers are likely to have encounters with sea turtles, dolphins and a wide variety of colourful fish as well as rare opportunities to swim with eagle rays, spotted morays and manta rays.  Furthermore, due to the cooler currents, divers can also expect to see such shark species as hammerheads, Galapagos and the incredible whale shark.

Marine Life & Wildlife
The marine life that surrounds Darwin is diverse, consisting of large shoals of fish as well as schools of hammerheads, Galapagos, silky, blacktip and the elusive whale sharks (June - November).  In addition, divers can also expect to encounter green turtles, manta rays, dolphins, melon-headed whales, pilot whales and large numbers of playful sea lions.  In some of the more protected coves around Darwin, even snorkelling is possible.

Arguably one of the most famous dive sites of the Galapagos is that of El Arco - a living theatre of incredible marine life, where divers are likely to encounter large numbers of whale sharks, hammerheads, Galapagos sharks, silky sharks, dolphins and turtles.

The dive site of El Arenal consists of an underwater sloping sand 'driveway' and is a renowned location for spotting hammerhead sharks, blacktip sharks and whale sharks as well as big-eyed jacks.  The steep barnacle covered walls drop off into deeper ocean.

Other marine life that divers are likely to encounter around Darwin include scorpion fish, blue-spotted, amber and big-eye jacks, trumpet fish, parrot fish and rainbow runners to name but a few.

Aside from its fascinating marine life, Darwin is also home to thriving populations of birds, including frigatebirds, red-footed and masked boobies, swallow-tailed gulls and the vampire finch.  Visitors should also keep a look out for the endemic Darwin Mockingbird.

Geology
Geologically, Darwin Island derives from the remains of an extinct volcano, which is believed to have last erupted approximately 400,000 years ago.  There are currently two theories revolving around the formation of the lineament, in which both Darwin and Wolf are situated.  The first theory states that the magma rising from the mantle plume that forms the main Galapagos Islands has been channelled towards the Galapagos Spreading Centre.  The second theory claims that there has been a separate rise in magma, resultant from stress in the ocean lithosphere by a transform fault.  Darwin's lava flows are homogenous, due to its relatively young age, with a similar chemical composition to those of the Galapagos Spreading Centre.

Historically, it is believed that Darwin has experienced at least two eruptive periods of two tuff layers, separated by plagioclase ultraphyric basalt.  Evidence also suggests that Darwin was much a substantially larger edifice - although over the years, significant erosion has inevitably occurred.

Probably one of Darwin's most symbolic features is that of the natural rock arch, a landmark which lies less than a kilometre off the main island. This arch at one stage would have been part of a larger structure.