Wayne's Word Index Noteworthy Plants Trivia Lemnaceae Biology 101 Botany Scenic Wildflowers Trains Spiders & Insects Search  Page Views & Awards     Bibliography     Biography     Peer Review     See Wayne On Wikipedia    Travel Regions of Wayne P. Armstrong    © W.P. Armstrong 20 June 2018 During my teaching career and retirement from Palomar College I have taken many field trips throughout the United States, New World and South Pacific. Most of my field trips involved the quest for interesting and unusual plant species, although I have concentrated on ants during my retirement. My trips often involved the exploration of a single canyon or mountain in the western United States. Images from many of these trips are listed under the blue Scenic Tab at the top of this page and on other Wayne's Word pages. I haven't traveled as extensively as some naturalists, but under a microscope I have observed many of nature's wonders that some world travelers have probably missed. East crest of the Sierra San Pedro Martir Plateau, Baja California. Wayne is standing on a ridge overlooking Cerro de la Encantada, elevation about 9,000 feet. On this trip Wayne was searching for the rare, endemic San Pedro Martir cypress (Cupressus montana). Photo was taken in April 1971, scanned from 35 mm Kodachrome transparency. Travels Of Wayne P. Armstrong North America & Hawaii United States, Canada (British Columbia, Alberta, Ontario, Québec, Nova Scotia), Alaska, Mexico (Baja California, Yucatán, Cancún, Tulum), Hawaiian Islands (Oahu, Maui, Hawaii, Kauai, Molokai), Central America Costa Rica, Guatemala, Honduras (Roatan), El Salvador, Belize (Ambergris Caye, New River), West Indies Grand Cayman, Puerto Rico, U.S. Virgin Islands, Tortola (British Virgin Islands), Antigua, Dominica, South America Ecuador (Quito, Guayaquil, Andes), Galapagos Islands, Rio Napo (Tribulary Of The Amazon River), French Polynesia Tahiti, Moorea, Tetiaroa Atoll, A Few Images From One Of My Spectacular Trips      Back To Scenic Index Page   Galapago Islands: Palomar College Field Trip August 1989 Ektachrome Transparencies by W.P. Armstrong, August 1989 M/N Bucanero off the shore of Hood Island. Marine iguana (Amblyrhynchus cristatus) on Hood Island. This is an excellent example of adaptive radiation where ancestral species colonized a new habitat and evolved into different species. Many thousands of years ago, iguanas floated out to these volcanic islands from the mainland of Ecuador. The new species evolved in response to different selection pressures that enabled them to fill unique ecological niches. This species is unique amoung modern lizards because it dives and forages in the sea. There are also endemic land iguanas on the Galapagos Islands that feed on prickly pear cactus and other vegetation. The story of Darwin's Finches on the Galapagos Islands is another classic example of adaptive radiation. Blue-Footed Booby (Sula nebouxii) on Hood Island. Young Galapagos fur seal (Arctocephalus galapagoensis) on Hood Island. Giant prickly pear (Opuntia echios var. gigantea) on Santa Cruz Island. This remarkable species evolved a tall woody trunk resembling a ponderosa pine to protect it from browsing by giant tortoises. Galapagos passion flower vine (Passiflora foetida galapagensis) on Santa Cruz Island. Floreana Island in early evening: The endemic shrub Lecocarpus pinnatifidus (foreground) with the M/N Bucanero in distance. A few of us were left on this island until the crew discovered that we didn't show up for dinner on the Bucanero! Return To WAYNE'S WORD Home Page Return To NOTEWORTHY PLANTS Page Go To Biology GEE WHIZ TRIVIA Page Go To The LEMNACEAE ON-LINE Page All text material & images on these pages copyright © W.P. Armstrong