Tourist mosquitoes threaten Galapagos animals

Buenos Aires Herald reports that stowaway mosquitoes are threatening the once isolated wildlife on the Galapagos Islands.

The invasive insects are believed to be transported by planes and tourist boats, ferried to the island by the increasing number of tourists.

Experts fear the spread of the southern house mosquito, or Culex quinquefasciatus, could have the same devastating effect in the Galapagos as in Hawaii during the late 19th century, when disease wiped out many indigenous birds.

The government of Ecuador recently introduced a requirement for insecticide spraying on aircraft flying to the Galapagos, but the scientists said the scheme's effectiveness was not being monitored and the rules did not apply to cargo ships.

Mosquitoes are the latest in a string of invaders - including rats, wild pigs, flies and invasive plants - that have colonized the Pacific islands, located about 600 miles off South America's coast along the equator.

Read the full story: Stowaway mosquitoes threaten Galapagos wildlife

Photo from BA Herald

Saving Ecuador's condors

Reuters video reports on Ecuador's efforts to save their endangered condor.

Indigenous to the country, the scavenger birds are being bred in captivity because their native habitat is now occupied by people. Ecuadorian conservationists hope to revive the birds that have already been wiped out in neighboring Venezuela.

Watch the report below:

Ecuador volcano eruption could hurt Galapagos specie

Reuters video reports on the Galapagos Island volcano eruption and lava flow that could be hurting the native species made famous by Charles Darwin.

Watch below: