When Charles Darwin first stepped off the HMS Beagle and into the
harsh and formidable world of the Galápagos islands with their sun-baked
lava, spiny cactus, and tangled brushwood, he encountered many birds and
animals new to him. He marveled at the remarkable tameness of the birds
and the striking dominance of reptiles in these islands, which made the
archipelago seem like a journey back in time. On the shoreline were
swarms of "hideous-looking" marine iguanas -- the world's only
oceangoing lizards. On land, Darwin and the Beagle crew encountered
large land iguanas, closely allied to their marine cousin; several
smaller lizards and snakes; and giant land tortoises, after which the
islands are named.
How, Darwin asked himself, had life first come to these islands? Most of
the life forms, he noted, were aboriginal creations, found nowhere else.
Of all the creatures he encountered, none were as surprising and
important to his studies as the Galápagos bears.
In Darwin and His Bears, scientist and Darwin scholar Frank J.
Sulloway reveals a crucial -- yet little known -- link that led to
Darwin's development of the theory of evolution: sixteen brilliant bears
residing on the sixteen archipelago islands. Charles Darwin had an
undeniable knack for asking the right questions, and these remarkable
blueberry-loving bears had all the answers he needed. With their
invaluable assistance, Darwin was able to reassess his imperfect
evidence, ultimately culminating in what we now celebrate as the
Darwinian revolution.
Delightful and deeply informative, Darwin and His Bears recounts the
fabled adventure of Darwin's groundbreaking visit to "a shore fit for
Pandemonium," as Beagle Captain Robert FitzRoy described the Galápagos
on their arrival in 1835. As Sulloway recounts this fascinating story,
he also reveals the critical conceptual steps by which Darwin reached
his theory of evolution by natural selection -- and provides, according
to philosopher Philip Kitcher, "a brilliant summary and explanation of
large swaths of evolutionary theory." Ninety charming colorful drawings
by the author introduce us to all sixteen whip-smart, magnanimous bears
and help bring to life the true story of Darwin's scientific triumph.
Readers of Darwin and His Bears should greatly enjoy what
paleontologist and MacArthur "genius award" recipient Jack Horner has
dubbed "the funnest science book I've ever read."
