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Peristiwa yang langka terjadi di dunia, dimana para orang kaya sejagat terutama dari para raja dunia maya seperti Facebook, Google, Twitter, Yahoo, Apple Dan beberapa lainnya (Hanya dari Microsoft) yang tidak hadir entah kenapa. Mereka semua berkumpul dalam jamuan makan malam bersama Presiden Amerika Serikat Barrack Obama. Bila dijumlah jumlahkan maka kekayaan para tamu yang hadir itu bisa mencapai angka yang spektakuler yaitu hingga 1 Triliun Dollar Amerika.
Saat Orang-Orang Terkaya Berkumpul Dalam Acara Makan: Siapakah Yang Akan Membayar Tagihannya? Dari kiri ke kanan (searah jarum jam) Eric Schmidt, Arthur D Levinson, T John Chambers, John Doerr, Larry Ellison, Reed Hastings, John L Hennessy, Carol Bartz, Dick Costolo, Mark Zuckerberg, Barack Obama, Steve Jobs
Mereka yang terbilang masuk dalam para juragan dari Silicone Valley ini berkumpul di markas John Doerr kapitalis lembah silikon yang terkenal dengan jagoan para master IT tersebut. Mereka bersama Obama makan malam selama 2 jam mungkin saja pendekatan sang presiden yang tahun depan nyalon lagi ini, betapa tidak yang berkumpul ini adalah penguasa jagat maya yang sangat berpengaruh di dunia.
Apa menu favorit di jamuan makan malam tersebut, Chef Yigit Pura menuturkan Pie Pisang Krim, sang Presiden pun terlihat begitu menikmatinya. Seperti dikutip ruanghati.com dari Mail Online dalam dinner tersebut ada yang agak beda, yaitu penampilan bos Facebook, Mark Zuckerberg yang biasanya casual malam itu tampil secara formal alias necis.
Siapa yang mau bergabung di makan malam selanjutnya, mesti jadi kaya dan berpengaruh dulu syaratnya
Berikut detil tamu undangan yang hadir:
Eric Schmidt
Pemilik Google
Kekayaan US$7 Miliar
Penilaian pasar Google US$171,8 Miliar
Dalam masa sepuluh tahun, Schmidt membuat Google bertransformasi menjadi raksasa internet global yang seperti sekarang ini. Ia mengundurkan diri sebagai CEO bulan lalu dan kini menjadi anggota Presiden Dewan Penasehat Ilmu Pengetahuan dan Teknologi.
Arthur D Levinson
Pemimpin Genentech
Kekayaan US$850.000 pada tahun 2010
Penilaian pasar Genentech US$46.8
Didirikan pada tahun 1976, Genentech (sekarang dimiliki oleh Roche) memelopori menggunakan informasi genetik manusia untuk mengembangkan obat-obatan, termasuk pengobatan kanker. Levinson mengundurkan diri sebagai CEO di tahun 2009, dan sekarang duduk di dewan direksi Apple.
T John Chambers
CEO, Cisco Systems
Senilai US$1 miliar
Penilaian pasar Cisco US$96 miliar
John Doerr
Mitra, Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers
Kekayaan US$2,2 miliar
Tuan rumah pada saat itu, Doerr adalah investor teknologi. Kembali di tahun 1999, KPCB memimpin investasi US$25 juta. KPCB telah berpartisipasi dalam lebih dari US$2,3 miliar investasi sejak Mei 2010.
Larry Ellison
CEO, Oracle
Kekayaan US$39,5 miliar
Penilaian pasar Oracle US$177,6 miliar
Orang terkaya kelima di dunia saat ini, Ellison mendirikan Oracle pada tahun 1977.
Reed Hastings
Co-founder dan CEO, Netflix
Kekayaan US$5.5 juta pada tahun 2010
Penilaian pasar Netflix US$12 miliar
Pada tahun 1997 bersama Hastings-mendirikan Netflix, layanan berlangganan online untuk film dan TV yang kini memiliki lebih dari 20 juta anggota di Amerika Utara. Dia pernah mengajar matematika di Swaziland selama bertugas dua tahun di AS Peace Corps.
John L Hennessy
Presiden, Universitas Stanford
Kekayaan US$31,4 juta
Stanford US$15,9 miliar
Terletak di jantung Silicon Valley, Stanford memiliki asosiasi lama dengan perusahaan teknologi di daerah itu, banyak dari para pendiri (termasuk Google, Cisco Systems, Hewlett-Packard dan Yahoo!) lulus melalui universitas tersebut.
Carol Bartz
CEO, Yahoo!
Kekayaan US$47,2 juta pada 2009
Penilaian pasar Yahoo! US$ 23,7 miliar
Bartz, yang bergabung dengan Yahoo pada tahun 2009, memegang kehormatan dalam puncak daftar dari 2.010 eksekutif dengan bayaran tertinggi untuk menjalankan perusahaan berkinerja buruk. Meskipun Yahoo! tetap merek internet global, namun masih dianggap dalam kemunduran.
Dick Costolo
CEO, Twitter
Kekayaan US$120 juta
Penilaian pasar Twitter US$3,7 miliar
Costolo menjual FeedBurner (penyedia alat manajemen untuk pemilik situs web) untuk Google pada tahun 2007 yang diisukan senilai US$100 juta. Tahun lalu ia mengambil alih sebagai CEO Twitter.
Mark Zuckerberg
CEO, Facebook
Worth US$135 miliar
Penilaian pasar Facebook US$50 miliar
Zuckerberg 'berusaha' untuk membuat dunia menjadi tempat yang lebih terbuka dengan membantu orang terhubung dan berbagi', sesuai dengan profil Facebook-nya sendiri. Untungnya untuk dia, dia menjadi kaya raya dalam proses tersebut.
Steve Westly
Pengelola dan pendiri, Grup Westly
Senilai US$500 juta
Seorang pendukung Partai Demokrat, kapitalis ventura Westly menjabat sebagai kursi co California untuk tahun 2008 dalam kampanye pemilihan presiden Obama. Grup Westly telah berpartisipasi dalam lebih dari US$ 178 miliar investasi sejak April 2010.
Barack Obama
Presiden, Amerika Serikat
Kekayaan US$10.5 juta
Produk Domestik Bruto (PDB) USA US$14,7 Triliun
Obama terkenal karena cintanya terhadap teknologi, dia merangkul media sosial dalam kampanye pemilihan, dan dikabarkan dihadiahi iPad, dua bulan sebelum mereka mulai dijual. ajudan Nya Valerie Jarrett juga menghadiri makan malam (duduk di sebelah kanan Zuckerberg).
Ann Doerr
Nyonya rumah, sebagai istri dari John Doerr, dan tidak asing dengan teknologi, memegang sarjana dan gelar master dalam rekayasa elektronika. Seorang aktivis lingkungan, ia bekerja bersama suaminya dalam upaya filantropi-nya.
Steve Jobs
Co-founder dan CEO, Apple
Kekayaan US$ 8,3 miliar
Penilaian pasar Apple US$ 323,3 miliar
Jobs telah mengubah industri teknologi beberapa kali. Setelah merintis tahun pertama di Apple, dia meninggalkan perusahaan untuk mendirikan NeXT (yang menciptakan mesin di mana web ini dikembangkan), sebelum kembali ke ujung tombak 'iRevolution'.
Friday, May 27, 2011
Thursday, May 12, 2011
2 Mantan Presiden indonesia yang Dilupakan Sejarah Dunia
1. syarifudin prawiranegara
Dalam sejarahnya, Negara Indonesia pernah mengalami pergantian sistem pemerintahan. Dari kesatuan berubah menjadi serikat dan berubah kembali menjadi kesatuan hingga kini.Demikian juga dengan pemimpinnya atau presidennya. Selama 63 tahun berdiri sebagai Negara, telah terjadi berkali-kali pergantian pemimpin di Indonesia. Mulai dari ir. Soekarno hingga Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono sekarang.
Sebagai penjabat presiden,umumnya orang Indonesia hanya mengenal Soekarno, Soeharto, BJ Habibie, Abdurahman Wahid, Megawati Soekarno Putrie dan Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono. Padahal masih ada dua lagi presiden Indonesia dan jarang sekali disebut. Yakni Syafrudin Prawiranegara dan Mr. Asaat.
Dua orang ini pernah menjabat sementara ketika eranya Soekarno. Syafrudin Prawiranegara menjabat Presiden/ketua PDRI (Pemerintahan DaruratRepublik Indonesia) ketikaSoekarno dan M. Hatta ditawan Belanda dan ketika ibukota Yogyakarta jatuh ke tangan Belanda. Agar pemerintahan tetap eksis dan berjalan, akhirnya dibentuklah PDRI dengan Syafrudin Prawiranegara sebagai penjabat presiden.Syafrudin menjabat Presiden Indonesia Darurat sejak 19 Desember 1948
Mr. Syafruddin Prawiranegara, atau juga ditulis Sjafruddin Prawiranegara (lahir di Serang, Banten, 28 Februari 1911 – meninggal di Jakarta, 15 Februari 1989 pada umur 77 tahun) adalah pejuang pada masa kemerdekaan Republik Indonesia yang juga pernah menjabat sebagai Presiden/Ketua PDRI (Pemerintah Darurat Republik Indonesia) ketika pemerintahan Republik Indonesia di Yogyakarta jatuh ke tangan Belanda saat Agresi Militer Belanda II pada tanggal 19 Desember 1948.
2. Mr.assaat
Siapa Mr. Assaat ?
Lahir di sebuah kampung bernama Kubang Putih Banuhampu, pada tanggal 18 September 1904. Memasuki sekolah agama "Adabiah" dan MULO Padang, selanjutnya ke STOVIA Jakarta. Karena jiwanya tidak terpanggil menjadi seorang dokter, ditinggalkannya STOVIA dan melanjutkan ke AMS (SMU sekarang). Dari AMS Assaat melajutkan studinya ke Rechts Hoge School (Sekolah Hakim Tinggi) juga di Jakarta.
Ketika menjadi studen RHS inilah, beliau memulai berkecimpung dalam gerakan kebangsaan, ialah gerakan pemuda dan politik. Masa saat itu Assaat giat dalam organisasi pemuda "Jong Sumatranen Bond". Karir politiknya makin menanjak lalu berhasil menduduki kursi anggota Pengurus Besar dari "Perhimpunan Pemuda Indonesia". Ketika Perhimpunan Pemuda Indonesia mempersatukan diri dalam "Indonesia Muda", ia terpilih mejadi Bendahara Komisaris Besar " Indonesia Muda".
Dalam kedudukannya menjadi studen (mahasiswa), Assaat memasuki pula gerakan politik "Partai Indonesia" disingkat Partindo. Dalam partai ini, Assaat bergabung dengan pemimpin Partindo seperti : Adnan Kapau Gani, Adam Malik, Amir Syarifuddin dan lain-lainnya.
Kegiatannya di bidang politik pergerakan kebangsaan, akhirnya tercium oleh profesornya dan pihak Belanda, sehingga dia tidak diluluskan walaupun setelah beberapa kali mengikuti ujian akhir. Tersinggung atas perlakuan demikian, gelora pemudanya makin bergejolak, dia putuskan meninggalkan Indonesia pergi ke negeri Belanda. Di Nederland dia memperoleh gelar "Meester in de rechten" (Sarjana Hukum).
Sekitar tahun 1946-1949, di Jalan Malioboro Yogyakarta sering terlihat seorang berbadan kurus semampai berpakaian sederhana sesuai dengan irama revolusi.
Terkadang ia berjalan kaki, kalau tidak bersepeda menelusuri Malioboro menuju ke kantor KNIP tempatnya bertugas. Orang ini tidak lain adalah Mr. Assaat, yang selalu menunjukkan sikap sederhana berwajah cerah dibalik kulitnya kehitam-hitaman. Walaupun usianya saat itu baru 40 tahun, terlihat rambutnya mulai memutih. Kepalanya tidak pernah lepas dari peci beludru hitam.
Mungkin generasi sekarang yang berumur 30 sampai 35 tahun, kurang atau sedikit sekali mengenal perjuangan Mr. Assaat sebagai salah seorang patriot demokrat yang tidak kecil andilnya bagi menegakkan serta mempertahankan Republik Indonesia.
Assaat adalah seorang yang setia memikul tanggung jawab, baik selama revolusi berlangsung hingga pada tahap akhir penyelesaian revolusi. Pada masa-masa kritis itu, Assaat tetap memperlihatkan dedikasi yang luar biasa.
Ia tetap berdiri pada posnya di KNIP, tanpa mengenal pamrih dan patah semangat. Sejak ia terpilih menjadi ketua KNIP, jabatan ini tidak pernah terlepas dari tangannya. Sampai kepadanya diserahkan tugas sebagai Acting (Pejabat) Presiden RI di kota perjuangan di Yogyakarta.
Sebagai ilustrasi dapat dikemukakan, Komite Nasional Indonesia Pusat (KNIP) dan Badan Pekerjanya selama revolusi sedang berkobar telah dua kali mengadakah hijrah.
Pertama di Jakarta, dengan tempat bersidang di bekas Gedung Komidi di Pasat baru dan di gedung Palang Merah Indonesia di Kramat. Karena perjuangan bertambah hangat, demi kelanjutan Revolusi Indonesia, sekitar tahun 1945 dipindahkan ke Yogyakarta.
Kemudian pada tahun itu juga KNIP dan Badan Pekerja, pindah ke Purwokerto, Jawa Tengah. Ketika situasi Purwokerto dianggap "kurang aman" untuk kedua kalinya KNIP hijrah ke Yogyakarta. Pada saat inilah Mr. Assaat sebagai anggota sekretariatnya. Tidak lama berselang dia ditunjuk menjadi ketua KNIP beserta Badan Pekerjanya
1. syarifudin prawiranegara
Dalam sejarahnya, Negara Indonesia pernah mengalami pergantian sistem pemerintahan. Dari kesatuan berubah menjadi serikat dan berubah kembali menjadi kesatuan hingga kini.Demikian juga dengan pemimpinnya atau presidennya. Selama 63 tahun berdiri sebagai Negara, telah terjadi berkali-kali pergantian pemimpin di Indonesia. Mulai dari ir. Soekarno hingga Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono sekarang.
Sebagai penjabat presiden,umumnya orang Indonesia hanya mengenal Soekarno, Soeharto, BJ Habibie, Abdurahman Wahid, Megawati Soekarno Putrie dan Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono. Padahal masih ada dua lagi presiden Indonesia dan jarang sekali disebut. Yakni Syafrudin Prawiranegara dan Mr. Asaat.
Dua orang ini pernah menjabat sementara ketika eranya Soekarno. Syafrudin Prawiranegara menjabat Presiden/ketua PDRI (Pemerintahan DaruratRepublik Indonesia) ketikaSoekarno dan M. Hatta ditawan Belanda dan ketika ibukota Yogyakarta jatuh ke tangan Belanda. Agar pemerintahan tetap eksis dan berjalan, akhirnya dibentuklah PDRI dengan Syafrudin Prawiranegara sebagai penjabat presiden.Syafrudin menjabat Presiden Indonesia Darurat sejak 19 Desember 1948
Mr. Syafruddin Prawiranegara, atau juga ditulis Sjafruddin Prawiranegara (lahir di Serang, Banten, 28 Februari 1911 – meninggal di Jakarta, 15 Februari 1989 pada umur 77 tahun) adalah pejuang pada masa kemerdekaan Republik Indonesia yang juga pernah menjabat sebagai Presiden/Ketua PDRI (Pemerintah Darurat Republik Indonesia) ketika pemerintahan Republik Indonesia di Yogyakarta jatuh ke tangan Belanda saat Agresi Militer Belanda II pada tanggal 19 Desember 1948.
2. Mr.assaat
Siapa Mr. Assaat ?
Lahir di sebuah kampung bernama Kubang Putih Banuhampu, pada tanggal 18 September 1904. Memasuki sekolah agama "Adabiah" dan MULO Padang, selanjutnya ke STOVIA Jakarta. Karena jiwanya tidak terpanggil menjadi seorang dokter, ditinggalkannya STOVIA dan melanjutkan ke AMS (SMU sekarang). Dari AMS Assaat melajutkan studinya ke Rechts Hoge School (Sekolah Hakim Tinggi) juga di Jakarta.
Ketika menjadi studen RHS inilah, beliau memulai berkecimpung dalam gerakan kebangsaan, ialah gerakan pemuda dan politik. Masa saat itu Assaat giat dalam organisasi pemuda "Jong Sumatranen Bond". Karir politiknya makin menanjak lalu berhasil menduduki kursi anggota Pengurus Besar dari "Perhimpunan Pemuda Indonesia". Ketika Perhimpunan Pemuda Indonesia mempersatukan diri dalam "Indonesia Muda", ia terpilih mejadi Bendahara Komisaris Besar " Indonesia Muda".
Dalam kedudukannya menjadi studen (mahasiswa), Assaat memasuki pula gerakan politik "Partai Indonesia" disingkat Partindo. Dalam partai ini, Assaat bergabung dengan pemimpin Partindo seperti : Adnan Kapau Gani, Adam Malik, Amir Syarifuddin dan lain-lainnya.
Kegiatannya di bidang politik pergerakan kebangsaan, akhirnya tercium oleh profesornya dan pihak Belanda, sehingga dia tidak diluluskan walaupun setelah beberapa kali mengikuti ujian akhir. Tersinggung atas perlakuan demikian, gelora pemudanya makin bergejolak, dia putuskan meninggalkan Indonesia pergi ke negeri Belanda. Di Nederland dia memperoleh gelar "Meester in de rechten" (Sarjana Hukum).
Sekitar tahun 1946-1949, di Jalan Malioboro Yogyakarta sering terlihat seorang berbadan kurus semampai berpakaian sederhana sesuai dengan irama revolusi.
Terkadang ia berjalan kaki, kalau tidak bersepeda menelusuri Malioboro menuju ke kantor KNIP tempatnya bertugas. Orang ini tidak lain adalah Mr. Assaat, yang selalu menunjukkan sikap sederhana berwajah cerah dibalik kulitnya kehitam-hitaman. Walaupun usianya saat itu baru 40 tahun, terlihat rambutnya mulai memutih. Kepalanya tidak pernah lepas dari peci beludru hitam.
Mungkin generasi sekarang yang berumur 30 sampai 35 tahun, kurang atau sedikit sekali mengenal perjuangan Mr. Assaat sebagai salah seorang patriot demokrat yang tidak kecil andilnya bagi menegakkan serta mempertahankan Republik Indonesia.
Assaat adalah seorang yang setia memikul tanggung jawab, baik selama revolusi berlangsung hingga pada tahap akhir penyelesaian revolusi. Pada masa-masa kritis itu, Assaat tetap memperlihatkan dedikasi yang luar biasa.
Ia tetap berdiri pada posnya di KNIP, tanpa mengenal pamrih dan patah semangat. Sejak ia terpilih menjadi ketua KNIP, jabatan ini tidak pernah terlepas dari tangannya. Sampai kepadanya diserahkan tugas sebagai Acting (Pejabat) Presiden RI di kota perjuangan di Yogyakarta.
Sebagai ilustrasi dapat dikemukakan, Komite Nasional Indonesia Pusat (KNIP) dan Badan Pekerjanya selama revolusi sedang berkobar telah dua kali mengadakah hijrah.
Pertama di Jakarta, dengan tempat bersidang di bekas Gedung Komidi di Pasat baru dan di gedung Palang Merah Indonesia di Kramat. Karena perjuangan bertambah hangat, demi kelanjutan Revolusi Indonesia, sekitar tahun 1945 dipindahkan ke Yogyakarta.
Kemudian pada tahun itu juga KNIP dan Badan Pekerja, pindah ke Purwokerto, Jawa Tengah. Ketika situasi Purwokerto dianggap "kurang aman" untuk kedua kalinya KNIP hijrah ke Yogyakarta. Pada saat inilah Mr. Assaat sebagai anggota sekretariatnya. Tidak lama berselang dia ditunjuk menjadi ketua KNIP beserta Badan Pekerjanya
KOPI BISA AMANKAN CEWEK DARI KANKER PAYUDARA
- Berbagai senyawa yang terkandung dalam kopi diketahui bersifat antioksidan sehingga diyakini bisa mengurangi risiko kanker. Termasuk pada perempuan, konsumsi 5 cangkir kopi sehari terbukti bisa mengurangi risiko kanker payudara hingga 57 persen.
Manfaat minum kopi untuk kesehatan payudara diungkap oleh dr Per Hal, seorang profesor kedokteran dari Karolinka Institute di Swedia. dalam penelitiannya, dr Hal melibatkan sekitar 5.929 perempuan Swedia dengan rentang usia 50 hingga 70 tahun.
Hasil pengamatan selama beberapa tahun menunjukkan, 50 persen partisipan terkena kanker payudara. Ketika dibandingkan dengan gaya hidup dan faktor lainnya, dr Hal menemukan hubungan antara kebiasaan minum kopi dengan risiko kanker payudara.
Partisipan yang minum 5 cangkir kopi tiap hari memiliki risiko kanker 33-57 persen lebih rendah dibandingkan partisipan yang minum kopi kurang dari 1 cangkir sehari. Jenis kanker payudara yang dipengaruhi oleh kebiasaan minum kopi adalah tipe Esterogen-Resistant (ER) Negative.
Beberapa penelitian sebelumnya juga membuktikan bahwa kopi bisa mengurangi risiko kanker, namun belum diketahui pasti senyawa apa yang berperan. dugaan semula, senyawa tersebut adalah fitoesterogen namun ternyata tidak berpengaruh pada kanker payudara ER Positive.
"Saya sendiri tidak akan serta merta menyarankan untuk lebih banyak minum kopi sebelum tahu persis mekanisme biologis yang bisa menjelaskan hubungan ini," ungkap dr Hal dalam laporannya di jurnal Breast Cancer seperti dikutip dari HealthDay,
Sikap hati-hati yang ditunjukkan dr Hal cukup beralasan, sebab penelitian lain yang juga dilakukan di Swedia mengungkap bahwa kopi juga bisa memberikan dampak negatif bagi payudara. Konon ukuran payudara bisa mengecil jika minum lebih dari 3 cangkir kopi tiap hari.
Seperti yang disampaikan dr Hal, sebelum ada yang menjelaskan mekanismenya sebaiknya kopi memang tidak dikonsumsi berlebihan hanya karena ingin bebas dari risiko kanker payudara. Kalaupun benar bisa memperkecil ukuran payudara, yang penting tidak terlalu banyak
- Berbagai senyawa yang terkandung dalam kopi diketahui bersifat antioksidan sehingga diyakini bisa mengurangi risiko kanker. Termasuk pada perempuan, konsumsi 5 cangkir kopi sehari terbukti bisa mengurangi risiko kanker payudara hingga 57 persen.
Manfaat minum kopi untuk kesehatan payudara diungkap oleh dr Per Hal, seorang profesor kedokteran dari Karolinka Institute di Swedia. dalam penelitiannya, dr Hal melibatkan sekitar 5.929 perempuan Swedia dengan rentang usia 50 hingga 70 tahun.
Hasil pengamatan selama beberapa tahun menunjukkan, 50 persen partisipan terkena kanker payudara. Ketika dibandingkan dengan gaya hidup dan faktor lainnya, dr Hal menemukan hubungan antara kebiasaan minum kopi dengan risiko kanker payudara.
Partisipan yang minum 5 cangkir kopi tiap hari memiliki risiko kanker 33-57 persen lebih rendah dibandingkan partisipan yang minum kopi kurang dari 1 cangkir sehari. Jenis kanker payudara yang dipengaruhi oleh kebiasaan minum kopi adalah tipe Esterogen-Resistant (ER) Negative.
Beberapa penelitian sebelumnya juga membuktikan bahwa kopi bisa mengurangi risiko kanker, namun belum diketahui pasti senyawa apa yang berperan. dugaan semula, senyawa tersebut adalah fitoesterogen namun ternyata tidak berpengaruh pada kanker payudara ER Positive.
"Saya sendiri tidak akan serta merta menyarankan untuk lebih banyak minum kopi sebelum tahu persis mekanisme biologis yang bisa menjelaskan hubungan ini," ungkap dr Hal dalam laporannya di jurnal Breast Cancer seperti dikutip dari HealthDay,
Sikap hati-hati yang ditunjukkan dr Hal cukup beralasan, sebab penelitian lain yang juga dilakukan di Swedia mengungkap bahwa kopi juga bisa memberikan dampak negatif bagi payudara. Konon ukuran payudara bisa mengecil jika minum lebih dari 3 cangkir kopi tiap hari.
Seperti yang disampaikan dr Hal, sebelum ada yang menjelaskan mekanismenya sebaiknya kopi memang tidak dikonsumsi berlebihan hanya karena ingin bebas dari risiko kanker payudara. Kalaupun benar bisa memperkecil ukuran payudara, yang penting tidak terlalu banyak
Manusia Yang Memiliki Ekor Sepanjang 33 CM
Tak ada yang aneh dari sosok Chandre Oram. Hanya, pria asal Alipurduar, Bengal Barat, India, ini memiliki daging tumbuh bertulang lunak sepanjang 33 sentimeter yang menyembul dari tulang ekornya.
Di tengah tradisi Hindu yang masih kental, masyarakat setempat meyakini Oram sebagai reinkarnasi Hanoman atau titisan Dewa Monyet. "Banyak orang sembuh dari penyakit parah ketika mereka menyentuh ekor saya," ujarnya seperti dikutip dari Daily Time.
Sejak tahun lalu, Oram sudah menarik perhatian masyarakat India juga mancanegara. Ia menjadi pusat perhatian setelah ribuan orang rela mengantre demi mendapat keberuntungan setelah menyentuh ekornya.
Popularitas itu tak sepenuhnya membuat Oram merasa beruntung. Gara-gara ekornya, ia pernah ditolak sedikitnya 20 wanita pujaannya. "Banyak yang membatalkan menikah dan pergi setelah melihat ekor saya," ujarnya. "Saya harus menemukan wanita yang bisa menerima saya dan ekor saya."
Terlepas dari kepercayaan masyarakat setempat, ahli bedah terkemuka di India, Dr B Ramana, mendiagnosis Oram mengalami cacat bawaan yang membuat tulang ekornya menonjol. Meski kondisinya langka, dokter sepenuhnya yakin Oram bukan dewa atau tuhan.
Dunia medis menyebut kelainan bawaan itu sebagai spina bifida. Ditutupi banyak rambut, tulang yang menjulur itu diperkirakan terjadi akibat mutasi gen yang memicu perpanjangan tulang ekor.
Sejumlah dokter telah menawarinya operasi untuk menghilangkan ekor itu. Tapi, Oram dan keluarganya menolak. "Dia tak akan bisa hidup tanpa ekornya. Ekor itu sudah menjadi bagian dari hidupnya, identitas dirinya," ujar Rekha, sang kakak.
Kasus serupa terjadi di Kota Lixing, China, tahun lalu. Seorang bayi perempuan bernama Hong Hong juga lahir dengan ekor. Berdasarkan pengamatan sinar X, ekor itu ternyatata menyambung dengan tumor jaringan lemak tulang belakang. Namun, atas persetujuan keluarga, dokter telah mengangkat ekor itu.
Jika Oram dan Hong Hong memiliki ekor, Huang Yuanfan, 84, dan Zhang Ruifang, 101, memiliki tanduk di kepala. Tanduk Yuanfan tumbuh hingga tujuh sentimeter di kepala bagian belakang. Sementara tandung Ruifang tumbuh sepanjang enam sentimeter di dahinya.
Mengenai tanduk yang tumbuh di kepala dua lansia itu, dokter memperkirakan itu berasal dari keratin, substansi yang sama seperti kuku.
Tak ada yang aneh dari sosok Chandre Oram. Hanya, pria asal Alipurduar, Bengal Barat, India, ini memiliki daging tumbuh bertulang lunak sepanjang 33 sentimeter yang menyembul dari tulang ekornya.
Di tengah tradisi Hindu yang masih kental, masyarakat setempat meyakini Oram sebagai reinkarnasi Hanoman atau titisan Dewa Monyet. "Banyak orang sembuh dari penyakit parah ketika mereka menyentuh ekor saya," ujarnya seperti dikutip dari Daily Time.
Sejak tahun lalu, Oram sudah menarik perhatian masyarakat India juga mancanegara. Ia menjadi pusat perhatian setelah ribuan orang rela mengantre demi mendapat keberuntungan setelah menyentuh ekornya.
Popularitas itu tak sepenuhnya membuat Oram merasa beruntung. Gara-gara ekornya, ia pernah ditolak sedikitnya 20 wanita pujaannya. "Banyak yang membatalkan menikah dan pergi setelah melihat ekor saya," ujarnya. "Saya harus menemukan wanita yang bisa menerima saya dan ekor saya."
Terlepas dari kepercayaan masyarakat setempat, ahli bedah terkemuka di India, Dr B Ramana, mendiagnosis Oram mengalami cacat bawaan yang membuat tulang ekornya menonjol. Meski kondisinya langka, dokter sepenuhnya yakin Oram bukan dewa atau tuhan.
Dunia medis menyebut kelainan bawaan itu sebagai spina bifida. Ditutupi banyak rambut, tulang yang menjulur itu diperkirakan terjadi akibat mutasi gen yang memicu perpanjangan tulang ekor.
Sejumlah dokter telah menawarinya operasi untuk menghilangkan ekor itu. Tapi, Oram dan keluarganya menolak. "Dia tak akan bisa hidup tanpa ekornya. Ekor itu sudah menjadi bagian dari hidupnya, identitas dirinya," ujar Rekha, sang kakak.
Kasus serupa terjadi di Kota Lixing, China, tahun lalu. Seorang bayi perempuan bernama Hong Hong juga lahir dengan ekor. Berdasarkan pengamatan sinar X, ekor itu ternyatata menyambung dengan tumor jaringan lemak tulang belakang. Namun, atas persetujuan keluarga, dokter telah mengangkat ekor itu.
Jika Oram dan Hong Hong memiliki ekor, Huang Yuanfan, 84, dan Zhang Ruifang, 101, memiliki tanduk di kepala. Tanduk Yuanfan tumbuh hingga tujuh sentimeter di kepala bagian belakang. Sementara tandung Ruifang tumbuh sepanjang enam sentimeter di dahinya.
Mengenai tanduk yang tumbuh di kepala dua lansia itu, dokter memperkirakan itu berasal dari keratin, substansi yang sama seperti kuku.
Kisah Pendaki Gunung Amputasi Tangan Sendiri untuk tetap HIDUP
Aron Ralston, seperti biasa melakukan pendakian rutinnya di hari Sabtu seorang diri. Ia berencana untuk menghabiskan hari dengan mengendarai sepeda gunung dan mendaki batu-batu merah dan pasir di luar Taman Nasional Canyonlands di Utah tenggara. Ralston berasal dari Aspen, Colorado, adalah sarjana teknik dan musik yang pernah bekerja selama lima tahun di Intel,
Aron Ralston sendiri telah mendaki tempat itu berkali-kali dan kali ini dia melakukannya sebagai pemanasan untuk sebuah pendakian gunung tertinggi di Amerika Utara. Mengenakan T-shirt dan celana pendek dan membawa ransel ia berencana untuk melakukan ‘Canyoneering’ jauh ke ngarai Blue john Canyon. Ranselnya berisi dua burrito (makanan khas Meksiko), satu liter air, alat multi fungsi tapi imitasi bermerek Leatherman, alat P3K, kamera video, kamera digital dan peralatan panjat tebing.
Aron Ralston tidak membawa jaket. Canyoneering adalah melakukan perjalanan ke ngarai dengan menggunakan berbagai skill : berjalan, mendaki, memanjat tebing dengan menggunakan berbagai peralatan. Canyoneering yang dilakukan Ralston adalah melewati lembah yang bercelah sempit.
Aron Ralston berada 150 meter di atas puncak dinding vertikal Blue john Canyon. Dia melakukan manuvernya untuk mencapai bagian atas sebuah batu besar yang terselip di antara dinding ngarai sempit. Dia mulai memanjat permukaan batu dan rasanya sangat stabil ketika ia berdiri di atas. Ketika ia mulai turun di sisi yang berlawanan, batu seberat 800-pound (kurang lebih dua setengah ton) itu tiba-tiba bergeser, menjepit lengan kanannya – ia terjebak.
EKSTRIM!! Aron Ralston, Kisah Pendaki Gunung Amputasi Tangan Sendiri untuk tetap HIDUP [FOTO + VIDEO]
Saat terjebak dengan tangan yang terhimpit batu, dia memiliki beberapa pilihan : antara menunggu seseorang yang muncul untuk menyelamatkannya, membebaskan dirinya sendiri, atau kalau semua cara gagal dia akan memutuskan lengannya. Kematian adalah kemungkinan yang terakhir tapi Ralston tidak ingin mempertimbangkannya.
Aron Ralston mencoba tali, jangkar dan alat yang ada untuk memindahkan batu, hasilnya batunya tidak bergerak sedikitpun. Berjam-jam jam dia berjuang untuk membebaskan dirinya dari batu tanpa hasil yang posisif. Di malam hari temperaturnya turun, Aron Ralston masih bekerja untuk membebaskan dirinya sendiri. Minggu dan Senin berlalu, tapi ia masih terjebak. Sinar matahari sampai di lantai ngarai sempit hanya untuk waktu yang sangat singkat waktu setiap hari. Dia kehabisan makanan dan air pada hari Selasa.
EKSTRIM!! Aron Ralston, Kisah Pendaki Gunung Amputasi Tangan Sendiri untuk tetap HIDUP [FOTO + VIDEO]
Pada hari Rabu, Aron Ralston mulai menghirup air seni yang telah ia simpan di hari sebelumnya. Dia mengeluarkan video kamera dan merekam pesan terakhir berisi selamat tinggal kepada orang tuanya. Dia lalu mengukir namanya, tanggal lahir, dan apa yang dia yakin adalah hari terakhirnya di bumi ke dinding ngarai. Di atasnya dia mengukir RIP. Pada Kamis pagi, Ralston melihat suatu visi (penampakan?) yaitu seorang anak 3 tahun berlari lalu dibawa oleh seorang pria yang hanya memiliki sebuah lengan.
Dia mengerti visi itu bahwa anak itu akan menjadi anak di masa depannya dan dia memutuskan untuk melakukan tindakan yang segera agar hidupnya bisa bertahan. Jika ia tidak menyelamatkan dirinya sekarang, dia tidak akan memiliki kekuatan fisik yang tersisa untuk melakukannya nanti. Akhirnya dia mengambil keputusan yang dramatis : memotong tangannya sendiri!
EKSTRIM!! Aron Ralston, Kisah Pendaki Gunung Amputasi Tangan Sendiri untuk tetap HIDUP [FOTO + VIDEO]
Aron Ralston siap untuk mengamputasi lengan kanan di bawah siku dengan menggunakan pisau multi fungsinya. Menyadari bahwa pisau itu tidak cukup tajam untuk memotong tulang lengan ia menekan tangannya melawan batu dan mematahkan tulangnya sehingga dia akan bisa memotong tangannya melalui jaringan. Pertama ia mematahkan tulang radius, yang menghubungkan siku dengan jempol.
Dalam beberapa menit ia memecahkan ulna, tulang di bagian luar lengan bawah. Selanjutnya ia menerapkan tourniquet yaitu membebat atau mengikat erat lengannya. Dia menggunakan pisau untuk mengamputasi lengan kanan di bawah siku. Seluruh prosedur dibutuhkan kurang lebih satu jam.
Aron Ralston memberikan pertolongan pertama untuk dirinya sendiri dari kit kecil di ransel. Ia menancapkan jangkar dengan tali di tempat itu. Ia kemudian mendaki 5 mil ke hilir Horseshoe Canyon yang berdekatan, di mana ia bertemu dengan keluarga wisatawan dari Belanda yang sedang berlibur.
Pasangan Belanda Eric dan Monique Meijer dan putra mereka, Andy, mulai keluar dari ngarai ketika mendengar suara di belakang “Tolong, saya butuh bantuan”. Pasangan itu segera menyadari bahwa dia pasti seorang pendaki yang hilang seperti keterangan dari petugas sehari sebelumnya..
Aron Ralston berjalan cepat menuju pasangan ini dengan lengannya yang digantung di sling buatan sendiri dan ia berbicara dengan jelas: “Halo, nama saya Aron Ralston, saya jatuh dari tebing pada hari Sabtu dan saya terjebak di bawah batu besar. Saya memotong tangan saya empat. jam yang lalu dan saya memerlukan pertolongan medis. Saya butuh helikopter “.
EKSTRIM!! Aron Ralston, Kisah Pendaki Gunung Amputasi Tangan Sendiri untuk tetap HIDUP [FOTO + VIDEO]
Istri dan anak Eric mencoba untuk keluar lebih dulu dari ngarai secepat mungkin untuk mendapatkan bantuan. Eric bersama dengan Aron Ralston untuk memberikan dia makanan, air dan dukungan mental. Meskipun kehilangan darah, Aron Ralston tetap mampu berjalan tapi pasir di dalam sepatunya mulai mengganggu dia. Dia berhenti sejenak di tempat yang teduh untuk menghilangkkan pasir dalam sepatunya lalu melanjutkan perjalannnya lagi. Tiba-tiba awak pesawat melihat dua orang di Horseshoe Canyon melambai.
Ini adalah istrinya Eric dan anaknya dan mereka memberikan sinyal ke arah helikopter dan menunjuk ke arah korban. Awak pesawat merespon dengan cepat dan mendarat di tempat yang luas di lembah dekat Aron Ralston. Kru pesawat terkejut saat melihat – lapisan darah kering dan segar tubuhnya – dan lengan yang hilang.
EKSTRIM!! Aron Ralston, Kisah Pendaki Gunung Amputasi Tangan Sendiri untuk tetap HIDUP [FOTO + VIDEO]
Aron Ralston menyandarkan kepalanya kembali helikopter dan menghirup air. Vetere mengajaknya ngobrol, sehingga dia tidak akan kehilangan kesadaran. Dua belas menit kemudian, helikopter tiba di Allen Memorial Hospital di Moab, Utah. Ralston masuk ke ruang gawat darurat tanpa bantuan, kemudian menunjuk pada peta di mana dia telah terjebak.
Para penyelamat heran Aron Ralston tetap hidup. Sebuah helikopter kemungkinan besar tidak akan menemukannya karena posisinya di celah lembah yang dalam dan sempit. Aron Ralston memiliki semangat luar biasa untuk hidup, dia tidak pernah menyerah dan akhirnya dia selamat. Kisah Aron Ralston sendiri sudah diangkat ke layar lebar dengan judul “127 Hours” dengan pemerannya James Franco.
sumber :http://unik13.info/2011/01/ekstrim-aron-ralston-kisah-pendaki-gunung-amputasi-tangan-sendiri-untuk-tetap-hidup-foto-video/
Aron Ralston, seperti biasa melakukan pendakian rutinnya di hari Sabtu seorang diri. Ia berencana untuk menghabiskan hari dengan mengendarai sepeda gunung dan mendaki batu-batu merah dan pasir di luar Taman Nasional Canyonlands di Utah tenggara. Ralston berasal dari Aspen, Colorado, adalah sarjana teknik dan musik yang pernah bekerja selama lima tahun di Intel,
Aron Ralston sendiri telah mendaki tempat itu berkali-kali dan kali ini dia melakukannya sebagai pemanasan untuk sebuah pendakian gunung tertinggi di Amerika Utara. Mengenakan T-shirt dan celana pendek dan membawa ransel ia berencana untuk melakukan ‘Canyoneering’ jauh ke ngarai Blue john Canyon. Ranselnya berisi dua burrito (makanan khas Meksiko), satu liter air, alat multi fungsi tapi imitasi bermerek Leatherman, alat P3K, kamera video, kamera digital dan peralatan panjat tebing.
Aron Ralston tidak membawa jaket. Canyoneering adalah melakukan perjalanan ke ngarai dengan menggunakan berbagai skill : berjalan, mendaki, memanjat tebing dengan menggunakan berbagai peralatan. Canyoneering yang dilakukan Ralston adalah melewati lembah yang bercelah sempit.
Aron Ralston berada 150 meter di atas puncak dinding vertikal Blue john Canyon. Dia melakukan manuvernya untuk mencapai bagian atas sebuah batu besar yang terselip di antara dinding ngarai sempit. Dia mulai memanjat permukaan batu dan rasanya sangat stabil ketika ia berdiri di atas. Ketika ia mulai turun di sisi yang berlawanan, batu seberat 800-pound (kurang lebih dua setengah ton) itu tiba-tiba bergeser, menjepit lengan kanannya – ia terjebak.
EKSTRIM!! Aron Ralston, Kisah Pendaki Gunung Amputasi Tangan Sendiri untuk tetap HIDUP [FOTO + VIDEO]
Saat terjebak dengan tangan yang terhimpit batu, dia memiliki beberapa pilihan : antara menunggu seseorang yang muncul untuk menyelamatkannya, membebaskan dirinya sendiri, atau kalau semua cara gagal dia akan memutuskan lengannya. Kematian adalah kemungkinan yang terakhir tapi Ralston tidak ingin mempertimbangkannya.
Aron Ralston mencoba tali, jangkar dan alat yang ada untuk memindahkan batu, hasilnya batunya tidak bergerak sedikitpun. Berjam-jam jam dia berjuang untuk membebaskan dirinya dari batu tanpa hasil yang posisif. Di malam hari temperaturnya turun, Aron Ralston masih bekerja untuk membebaskan dirinya sendiri. Minggu dan Senin berlalu, tapi ia masih terjebak. Sinar matahari sampai di lantai ngarai sempit hanya untuk waktu yang sangat singkat waktu setiap hari. Dia kehabisan makanan dan air pada hari Selasa.
EKSTRIM!! Aron Ralston, Kisah Pendaki Gunung Amputasi Tangan Sendiri untuk tetap HIDUP [FOTO + VIDEO]
Pada hari Rabu, Aron Ralston mulai menghirup air seni yang telah ia simpan di hari sebelumnya. Dia mengeluarkan video kamera dan merekam pesan terakhir berisi selamat tinggal kepada orang tuanya. Dia lalu mengukir namanya, tanggal lahir, dan apa yang dia yakin adalah hari terakhirnya di bumi ke dinding ngarai. Di atasnya dia mengukir RIP. Pada Kamis pagi, Ralston melihat suatu visi (penampakan?) yaitu seorang anak 3 tahun berlari lalu dibawa oleh seorang pria yang hanya memiliki sebuah lengan.
Dia mengerti visi itu bahwa anak itu akan menjadi anak di masa depannya dan dia memutuskan untuk melakukan tindakan yang segera agar hidupnya bisa bertahan. Jika ia tidak menyelamatkan dirinya sekarang, dia tidak akan memiliki kekuatan fisik yang tersisa untuk melakukannya nanti. Akhirnya dia mengambil keputusan yang dramatis : memotong tangannya sendiri!
EKSTRIM!! Aron Ralston, Kisah Pendaki Gunung Amputasi Tangan Sendiri untuk tetap HIDUP [FOTO + VIDEO]
Aron Ralston siap untuk mengamputasi lengan kanan di bawah siku dengan menggunakan pisau multi fungsinya. Menyadari bahwa pisau itu tidak cukup tajam untuk memotong tulang lengan ia menekan tangannya melawan batu dan mematahkan tulangnya sehingga dia akan bisa memotong tangannya melalui jaringan. Pertama ia mematahkan tulang radius, yang menghubungkan siku dengan jempol.
Dalam beberapa menit ia memecahkan ulna, tulang di bagian luar lengan bawah. Selanjutnya ia menerapkan tourniquet yaitu membebat atau mengikat erat lengannya. Dia menggunakan pisau untuk mengamputasi lengan kanan di bawah siku. Seluruh prosedur dibutuhkan kurang lebih satu jam.
Aron Ralston memberikan pertolongan pertama untuk dirinya sendiri dari kit kecil di ransel. Ia menancapkan jangkar dengan tali di tempat itu. Ia kemudian mendaki 5 mil ke hilir Horseshoe Canyon yang berdekatan, di mana ia bertemu dengan keluarga wisatawan dari Belanda yang sedang berlibur.
Pasangan Belanda Eric dan Monique Meijer dan putra mereka, Andy, mulai keluar dari ngarai ketika mendengar suara di belakang “Tolong, saya butuh bantuan”. Pasangan itu segera menyadari bahwa dia pasti seorang pendaki yang hilang seperti keterangan dari petugas sehari sebelumnya..
Aron Ralston berjalan cepat menuju pasangan ini dengan lengannya yang digantung di sling buatan sendiri dan ia berbicara dengan jelas: “Halo, nama saya Aron Ralston, saya jatuh dari tebing pada hari Sabtu dan saya terjebak di bawah batu besar. Saya memotong tangan saya empat. jam yang lalu dan saya memerlukan pertolongan medis. Saya butuh helikopter “.
EKSTRIM!! Aron Ralston, Kisah Pendaki Gunung Amputasi Tangan Sendiri untuk tetap HIDUP [FOTO + VIDEO]
Istri dan anak Eric mencoba untuk keluar lebih dulu dari ngarai secepat mungkin untuk mendapatkan bantuan. Eric bersama dengan Aron Ralston untuk memberikan dia makanan, air dan dukungan mental. Meskipun kehilangan darah, Aron Ralston tetap mampu berjalan tapi pasir di dalam sepatunya mulai mengganggu dia. Dia berhenti sejenak di tempat yang teduh untuk menghilangkkan pasir dalam sepatunya lalu melanjutkan perjalannnya lagi. Tiba-tiba awak pesawat melihat dua orang di Horseshoe Canyon melambai.
Ini adalah istrinya Eric dan anaknya dan mereka memberikan sinyal ke arah helikopter dan menunjuk ke arah korban. Awak pesawat merespon dengan cepat dan mendarat di tempat yang luas di lembah dekat Aron Ralston. Kru pesawat terkejut saat melihat – lapisan darah kering dan segar tubuhnya – dan lengan yang hilang.
EKSTRIM!! Aron Ralston, Kisah Pendaki Gunung Amputasi Tangan Sendiri untuk tetap HIDUP [FOTO + VIDEO]
Aron Ralston menyandarkan kepalanya kembali helikopter dan menghirup air. Vetere mengajaknya ngobrol, sehingga dia tidak akan kehilangan kesadaran. Dua belas menit kemudian, helikopter tiba di Allen Memorial Hospital di Moab, Utah. Ralston masuk ke ruang gawat darurat tanpa bantuan, kemudian menunjuk pada peta di mana dia telah terjebak.
Para penyelamat heran Aron Ralston tetap hidup. Sebuah helikopter kemungkinan besar tidak akan menemukannya karena posisinya di celah lembah yang dalam dan sempit. Aron Ralston memiliki semangat luar biasa untuk hidup, dia tidak pernah menyerah dan akhirnya dia selamat. Kisah Aron Ralston sendiri sudah diangkat ke layar lebar dengan judul “127 Hours” dengan pemerannya James Franco.
sumber :http://unik13.info/2011/01/ekstrim-aron-ralston-kisah-pendaki-gunung-amputasi-tangan-sendiri-untuk-tetap-hidup-foto-video/
7 Cara Mengutarakan Cinta
Kebanyakan pria maupun wanita bingung menunjukkan rasa cinta terhadap pasangannya. Sebenarnya, rasa cinta tidak selalu harus ditunjukkan dengan kata-kata, mengirim bunga atau kartu ucapan romantis.
https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2QzAKKvKUqeNL8wKeiKjF674hj3yFqwV7kSSJokSE4f8JZ5yY_1Iq2FzOuywlCQDK-axicc0SaVrkp56qwmDLW-RAyA0W1S0-Qq7NFG5CVT7Gi1yorm9P6jGoNOImx7FAv6aY9lLRvGI/s320/pacarbaik.jpg
Beberapa tindakan sederhana pun mampu menunjukkan bahwa si dia spesial di mata Anda. Berikut beberapa tindakan sederhana yang patut Anda lakukan, seperti dikutip dari Lifestyle MSN:
1. Membuatkan Makanan
Cari tahu apa makanan kesukaannya dan luangkan waktu untuk memasak nya, walaupun tidak terlalu mewah. Misalnya dengan memasak telur dadar untuk sarapan atau sup disertai roti. Hal tersebut akan membuat pasangan semakin jatuh cinta walaupun hasil masakan Anda tidak terlalu sempurna.
2. Memberikan Pujian
Pujian merupakan pernyataan yang tulus akan kebaikan atau keunggulan yang dimiliki seseorang. Tentunya setiap orang senang dipuji. Apalagi jika pujian tersebut datang dari pasangannya. Pastikan untuk memberikan pujian sesuai dengan kata hati Anda, jangan berbohong! Si dia akan lebih menghargai apa yang dikatakkan secara jujur.
3. Hargailah Pasangan Anda
Hargailah segala sesuatu yang telah dilakukan pasangan Anda. Contohnya dengan mengucapkan "terima kasih" atas apa yang telah dia lakukan atau bisa juga dengan mengucapkan "kamu telah membuatku nyaman ". Kalimat seperti itu telah memberitahukan bahwa usaha yang ia lakukan berhasil.
4. Berilah Kejutan
Berilah kejutan yang tidak mudah dilupakan, misalnya dengan membuat pesta ulang tahun kejutan yang dihadiri keluarga dan teman dekatnya. Anda juga bisa memberi si dia kejutan dengan tiba-tiba menyiapkan makan malam romantis. Usahakan kejutan itu berkesan sehingga akan selalu dikenangnya.
5. Jujurlah pada Pasangan
Jika Anda tidak ingin dibohongi pasangan, maka Anda juga harus bersikap jujur terhadapnya. Jika tidak mempunyai keberanian untuk membicarakannya, Anda dapat membuat daftar di kertas mengenai kekurangan Anda yang sebenarnya, dan kesalahan apa saja yang telah Anda lakukan. Apa yang Anda buat itu dapat menginspirasi si dia untuk melakukan hal yang sama sehingga tidak ada lagi yang disembunyikan antara satu sama lain.
6. Ungkapkan Perasaan Anda Secara Langsung
Ungkapkanlah perasaan Anda secara langsung di hadapannya, jangan melalui perantara seperti telepon, email, SMS, Facebook, Twitter atau BBM. Si dia akan lebih menghargai jika Anda berbicara langsung dan lebih menyadari betapa seriusnya Anda dengannya.
7. Terserah Anda saja heheheeee [source]
Kebanyakan pria maupun wanita bingung menunjukkan rasa cinta terhadap pasangannya. Sebenarnya, rasa cinta tidak selalu harus ditunjukkan dengan kata-kata, mengirim bunga atau kartu ucapan romantis.
https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2QzAKKvKUqeNL8wKeiKjF674hj3yFqwV7kSSJokSE4f8JZ5yY_1Iq2FzOuywlCQDK-axicc0SaVrkp56qwmDLW-RAyA0W1S0-Qq7NFG5CVT7Gi1yorm9P6jGoNOImx7FAv6aY9lLRvGI/s320/pacarbaik.jpg
Beberapa tindakan sederhana pun mampu menunjukkan bahwa si dia spesial di mata Anda. Berikut beberapa tindakan sederhana yang patut Anda lakukan, seperti dikutip dari Lifestyle MSN:
1. Membuatkan Makanan
Cari tahu apa makanan kesukaannya dan luangkan waktu untuk memasak nya, walaupun tidak terlalu mewah. Misalnya dengan memasak telur dadar untuk sarapan atau sup disertai roti. Hal tersebut akan membuat pasangan semakin jatuh cinta walaupun hasil masakan Anda tidak terlalu sempurna.
2. Memberikan Pujian
Pujian merupakan pernyataan yang tulus akan kebaikan atau keunggulan yang dimiliki seseorang. Tentunya setiap orang senang dipuji. Apalagi jika pujian tersebut datang dari pasangannya. Pastikan untuk memberikan pujian sesuai dengan kata hati Anda, jangan berbohong! Si dia akan lebih menghargai apa yang dikatakkan secara jujur.
3. Hargailah Pasangan Anda
Hargailah segala sesuatu yang telah dilakukan pasangan Anda. Contohnya dengan mengucapkan "terima kasih" atas apa yang telah dia lakukan atau bisa juga dengan mengucapkan "kamu telah membuatku nyaman ". Kalimat seperti itu telah memberitahukan bahwa usaha yang ia lakukan berhasil.
4. Berilah Kejutan
Berilah kejutan yang tidak mudah dilupakan, misalnya dengan membuat pesta ulang tahun kejutan yang dihadiri keluarga dan teman dekatnya. Anda juga bisa memberi si dia kejutan dengan tiba-tiba menyiapkan makan malam romantis. Usahakan kejutan itu berkesan sehingga akan selalu dikenangnya.
5. Jujurlah pada Pasangan
Jika Anda tidak ingin dibohongi pasangan, maka Anda juga harus bersikap jujur terhadapnya. Jika tidak mempunyai keberanian untuk membicarakannya, Anda dapat membuat daftar di kertas mengenai kekurangan Anda yang sebenarnya, dan kesalahan apa saja yang telah Anda lakukan. Apa yang Anda buat itu dapat menginspirasi si dia untuk melakukan hal yang sama sehingga tidak ada lagi yang disembunyikan antara satu sama lain.
6. Ungkapkan Perasaan Anda Secara Langsung
Ungkapkanlah perasaan Anda secara langsung di hadapannya, jangan melalui perantara seperti telepon, email, SMS, Facebook, Twitter atau BBM. Si dia akan lebih menghargai jika Anda berbicara langsung dan lebih menyadari betapa seriusnya Anda dengannya.
7. Terserah Anda saja heheheeee [source]
Sunday, May 8, 2011
Minggu, 13 Maret 2011
Lambang Gerakan Pramuka
Lambang Gerakan Pramuka
Lambang gerakan pramuka adalah tanda pengenal tetap yang mengkiaskan cita-cita setiap anggota Gerakan Pramuka.
Lambang tersebut diciptakan oleh Bapak Soehardjo Admodipura, seorang pembina Pramuka yang aktif bekerja di lingkungan Departemen Pertanian dan kemudian digunakan sejak 16 Agustus 1961. Lambang ini ditetapkan dengan Surat Keputusan Kwartir Nasional Gerakan Pramuka No. 06/KN/72 tahun 1972.
Bentuk dan Arti Kiasan
Bentuk lambang gerakan pramuka itu adalah Silhouette tunas kelapa. Arti kiasan lambang gerakan pramuka :
1.Buah nyiur dalam keadaan tumbuh dinamakan cikal, dan istilah cikal bakal di Indonesia berarti penduduk asli yang pertama, yang menurunkan generasi baru. Jadi lambang buah nyiur yang tumbuh itu mengkiaskan bahwa tiap anggota pramuka merupakan inti bagi kelangsungan hidup bangsa Indonesia.
2.Buah nyiur dapat bertahan lama dalam keadaan yang bagaimanapun juga. Jadi lambang itu mengkiaskan bahwa tiap anggota pramuka adalah seorang yang rohaniah dan jasmaniah sehat, kuat, dan ulet serta besar tekadnya dalam menghadapi segala tantangan dalam hidup dan dalam menempuh segala ujian dan kesukaran untuk mengabdi pada tanah air dan bangsa Indonesia.
3.Nyiur dapat tumbuh dimana saja, yang membuktikan besarnya daya upaya dalam menyesuaikan diri dalam mesy dimana dia berada dan dalam keadaan bagaimanapun juga.
4.Nyiur tumbuh menjulang lurus ke atas dan merupakan salah satu pohon yang tertinggi di Indonesia. Jadi lambang itu mengkiaskan bahwa tiap pramuka mempunyai cita-cita yang tinggi dan lurus, yakni yang mulia dan jujur, dan dia tetap tegak tidak mudah diombang-ambingkan oleh sesuatu.
5.Akar nyiur tumbuh kuat dan erat di dalam tanah. Jadi lambang itu mengkiaskan tekad dan keyakinan tiap pramuka yang berpegang pada dasar-dasar dan landasan-landasan yang baik, benar, kuat dan nyata ialah tekad dan keyakinan yang dipakai olehnya untuk memperkuat diri guna mencapai cita-citanya.
6.Nyiur adalah pohon yang serba guna dari ujung atas hingga akarnya. Jadi lambang itu mengkiaskan bahwa tiap pramuka adalah manusia yang berguna, dan membaktikan diri dan kegunaannya kepada kepentingan tanah air, bangsa dan negara Republik Indonesia serta kepada umat manusia.
Penggunaan Lambang
Lambang gerakan pramuka dapat digunakan pada panji, bendera, papan nama kwartir dan satuan, tanda pengenal administrasi gerakan pramuka. Penggunaan tersebut dimaksudkan sebagai alat pendidikan untuk mengingatkan dan meningkatkan kegiatan gerakan pramuka sesuai dengan kiasan yang ada pada lambang gerakan pramuka tersebut.
Lambang Gerakan Pramuka
Lambang Gerakan Pramuka
Lambang gerakan pramuka adalah tanda pengenal tetap yang mengkiaskan cita-cita setiap anggota Gerakan Pramuka.
Lambang tersebut diciptakan oleh Bapak Soehardjo Admodipura, seorang pembina Pramuka yang aktif bekerja di lingkungan Departemen Pertanian dan kemudian digunakan sejak 16 Agustus 1961. Lambang ini ditetapkan dengan Surat Keputusan Kwartir Nasional Gerakan Pramuka No. 06/KN/72 tahun 1972.
Bentuk dan Arti Kiasan
Bentuk lambang gerakan pramuka itu adalah Silhouette tunas kelapa. Arti kiasan lambang gerakan pramuka :
1.Buah nyiur dalam keadaan tumbuh dinamakan cikal, dan istilah cikal bakal di Indonesia berarti penduduk asli yang pertama, yang menurunkan generasi baru. Jadi lambang buah nyiur yang tumbuh itu mengkiaskan bahwa tiap anggota pramuka merupakan inti bagi kelangsungan hidup bangsa Indonesia.
2.Buah nyiur dapat bertahan lama dalam keadaan yang bagaimanapun juga. Jadi lambang itu mengkiaskan bahwa tiap anggota pramuka adalah seorang yang rohaniah dan jasmaniah sehat, kuat, dan ulet serta besar tekadnya dalam menghadapi segala tantangan dalam hidup dan dalam menempuh segala ujian dan kesukaran untuk mengabdi pada tanah air dan bangsa Indonesia.
3.Nyiur dapat tumbuh dimana saja, yang membuktikan besarnya daya upaya dalam menyesuaikan diri dalam mesy dimana dia berada dan dalam keadaan bagaimanapun juga.
4.Nyiur tumbuh menjulang lurus ke atas dan merupakan salah satu pohon yang tertinggi di Indonesia. Jadi lambang itu mengkiaskan bahwa tiap pramuka mempunyai cita-cita yang tinggi dan lurus, yakni yang mulia dan jujur, dan dia tetap tegak tidak mudah diombang-ambingkan oleh sesuatu.
5.Akar nyiur tumbuh kuat dan erat di dalam tanah. Jadi lambang itu mengkiaskan tekad dan keyakinan tiap pramuka yang berpegang pada dasar-dasar dan landasan-landasan yang baik, benar, kuat dan nyata ialah tekad dan keyakinan yang dipakai olehnya untuk memperkuat diri guna mencapai cita-citanya.
6.Nyiur adalah pohon yang serba guna dari ujung atas hingga akarnya. Jadi lambang itu mengkiaskan bahwa tiap pramuka adalah manusia yang berguna, dan membaktikan diri dan kegunaannya kepada kepentingan tanah air, bangsa dan negara Republik Indonesia serta kepada umat manusia.
Penggunaan Lambang
Lambang gerakan pramuka dapat digunakan pada panji, bendera, papan nama kwartir dan satuan, tanda pengenal administrasi gerakan pramuka. Penggunaan tersebut dimaksudkan sebagai alat pendidikan untuk mengingatkan dan meningkatkan kegiatan gerakan pramuka sesuai dengan kiasan yang ada pada lambang gerakan pramuka tersebut.
Wednesday, May 4, 2011
Galápagos tortoise
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Galápagos tortoise
Adult Galápagos tortoise
Conservation status
Vulnerable (IUCN 2.3) [1]
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Testudines
Suborder: Cryptodira
Family: Testudinidae
Genus: Chelonoidis
Species: C. nigra
Binomial name
Chelonoidis nigra[2]
(Quoy & Gaimard, 1824b[3])
Subspecies
Subspecies[1] [show]
See: Subspecies of Galápagos tortoise
* C. n. abingdoni (Extinct in the wild)
Günther, 1877[4]
* C. n. becki
Rothschild, 1901[5]
* C. n. chathamensis
Van Denburgh, 1907[6]
* C. n. darwini
Van Denburgh, 1907[6]
* C. n. duncanensis
Garman, 1917[7]
* C. n. hoodensis
Van Denburgh, 1907[6]
* C. n. nigra (Extinct)
Quoy & Gaimard, 1824b[3]
* C. n. phantastica (Extinct)
Van Denburgh, 1907[6]
* C. n. porteri
Rothschild, 1903[8]
* C. n. vicina
Günther, 1875[9]
Synonyms
Species synonymy[10] [show]
* Testudo californiana
Quoy & Gaimard, 1824a[11] (nomen oblitum)
* Testudo nigra
Quoy & Gaimard, 1824b[3] (nomen novum)
* Testudo elephantopus
Harlan, 1827[12] (nomen dubium)
* Testudo nigrita
Duméril and Bibron, 1834[13] (nomen dubium)
* Testudo planiceps
Gray, 1853[14] (nomen dubium)
* Testudo clivosa
Garman, 1917[7] (nomen dubium)
* Testudo typica
Garman, 1917[7] (nomen dubium)
* Testudo (Chelonoidis) elephantopus
Williams, 1952[15]
* Geochelone (Chelonoidis) elephantopus
Pritchard, 1967[16]
* Chelonoidis elephantopus
Bour, 1980[17]
Subspecies synonymy[2] [show]
C. n. nigra (nominate subspecies)
* Testudo californiana
Quoy & Gaimard, 1824a[11] (nomen oblitum)
* Testudo nigra
Quoy & Gaimard, 1824b[3] (nomen novum)
* Testudo galapagoensis
Baur 1889[18]
C. n. abingdoni
* Testudo ephippium
Günther, 1875[9] (partim, misidentified type specimen once erroneously attributed to what is now C. n. duncanensis)
* Testudo abingdoni
Günther, 1877[4]
C. n. becki
* Testudo becki
Rothschild, 1901[5]
C. n. chathamensis
* Testudo wallacei
Rothschild 1902[19] (partim, nomen dubium)
* Testudo chathamensis
Van Denburgh, 1907[6]
C. n. darwini
* Testudo wallacei
Rothschild 1902[19] (partim, nomen dubium)
* Testudo darwini
Van Denburgh, 1907[6]
C. n. duncanensis
* Testudo ephippium
Günther, 1875[9] (partim, misidentified type)
* Geochelone nigra duncanensis
Garman, 1917[7] in Pritchard, 1996[10](nomen nudum)
C. n. hoodensis
* Testudo hoodensis
Van Denburgh, 1907[6]
C. n. phantastica
* Testudo phantasticus
Van Denburgh, 1907[6]
C. n. porteri
* Testudo nigrita
Duméril and Bibron, 1834[13] (nomen dubium)
* Testudo porteri
Rothschild, 1903[8]
C. n. vicina
* Testudo microphyes
Günther, 1875[9]
* Testudo vicina
Günther, 1875[9]
* Testudo güntheri
Baur, 1889[18]
* Testudo macrophyes
Garman, 1917[7]
* Testudo vandenburghi
De Sola, R. 1930[20] (nomen nudum)
The Galápagos tortoise or Galápagos giant tortoise (Chelonoidis nigra) is the largest living species of tortoise, reaching weights of over 400 kg (880 lb) and lengths of over 1.8 meters (6 ft). With life spans in the wild of over 100 years, it is one of the longest-lived vertebrates. A captive individual lived at least 170 years.
The tortoise is native to seven of the Galápagos Islands, a volcanic archipelago about 1,000 km (620 mi) west of Ecuador. Spanish explorers who discovered the islands in the 16th century named them after the Spanish galápago, meaning tortoise.
Shell size and shape vary between populations. On islands with humid highlands, the tortoises are larger, with domed shells and short necks. On islands with dry lowlands, the tortoises are smaller, with "saddleback" shells and long necks. These island-to-island differences played a role in the inception of Charles Darwin's theory of evolution.
Tortoise numbers declined from over 250,000 in the 16th century to a low of around 3,000 in the 1970s. The decline was caused by hunting for tortoise meat and oil, habitat clearance for agriculture, and introduction of non-native animals such as rats, goats, and pigs. Seven subspecies of the original ten survive in the wild. An eighth subspecies (C. n. abingdoni) has only a single living individual, in captivity, nicknamed Lonesome George. Conservation efforts beginning in the 20th century have resulted in thousands of captive-bred juveniles being released onto their home islands, and it is estimated that numbers exceeded 19,000 at the start of the 21st century. Despite this rebound, the species as a whole is classified as "Vulnerable" by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).
Contents
[hide]
* 1 Taxonomy
* 2 Evolutionary history
o 2.1 Subspecies genetics
* 3 Description
o 3.1 Gigantism
o 3.2 Shell shape
* 4 Behaviour
* 5 Darwin's development of theory of evolution
* 6 Conservation
o 6.1 Historical exploitation
o 6.2 Modern conservation
* 7 Notes and references
* 8 External links
[edit] Taxonomy
Early classification
The Galápagos Islands were discovered in 1535, but first appeared on maps, of Gerardus Mercator and Abraham Ortelius, in about 1570.[21] The islands were named "Insulae de los Galopegos" (Islands of the Tortoises) in reference to the giant tortoises found there.[22][23][nb 1]
Initially, the giant tortoises of the Indian Ocean and those from the Galápagos were considered to be the same species. Naturalists thought that sailors had transported the tortoises.[24] In 1676, the pre-Linnaean authority Claude Perrault referred to both species as Tortue des Indes.[25] In 1783, Johann Gottlob Schneider classified all giant tortoises as Testudo indica ("Indian tortoise").[26] In 1812, August Friedrich Schweigger named them Testudo gigantea ("gigantic tortoise").[27] In 1834, André Marie Constant Duméril and Gabriel Bibron classified the Galápagos tortoises as a separate species, which they named Testudo nigrita ("black tortoise").[13]
Black and white photograph of Walter Rothschild straddling an adult Galápagos tortoise. Rothschild is a Victorian gentleman sporting a beard and top hat.
Walter Rothschild, cataloger of two Galápagos tortoise subspecies
Recognition of subpopulations
The first systematic survey of giant tortoises was by Albert Günther of the British Museum, in 1875.[9] Günther identified at least five distinct populations from the Galápagos, and three from the Indian Ocean islands. He expanded the list in 1877 to six from the Galápagos, four from the Seychelles, and four from the Mascarenes. Günther theorised that all the giant tortoises descended from a single ancestral population which spread by sunken land bridges.[28] This theory was later disproven by the understanding that the Galápagos, Seychelles and Mascarene islands are all of recent volcanic origin and therefore could not have been linked by land bridges. It is now thought that the Galápagos tortoises descended from an ancestor from South America.[29] The Indian Ocean tortoises derived from Madagascar.[30][31]
At the end of the 19th century, Georg Baur[18] and Walter Rothschild[5][8][19] recognised five more populations of Galápagos tortoise. In 1906, the Academy of Sciences collected specimens and gave them to John Van Denburgh for study. He identified four additional populations,[6] and proposed the existence of 15 species.[32] His list still guides the taxonomy of the Galápagos tortoise, though now ten populations are thought to have existed.[2]
Current species and genus names
The current species designation of nigra ("black" – Quoy & Gaimard, 1824b[3]) was resurrected in 1984[33] after it was discovered to be the senior synonym (an older taxonomic synonym taking historical precedence) for the then commonly used species name of elephantopus ("elephant footed" – Harlan, 1827[12]). The use of nigra is explained by Quoy and Gaimard's Latin description: "Testudo toto corpore nigro", meaning "tortoise with completely black body". Quoy and Gairmard described nigra from a living specimen, but there is no evidence that they knew of its accurate provenance within the Galápagos – the locality was in fact given as California. Garman proposed the linking of nigra with the extinct Floreana subspecies.[7] Later, Pritchard deemed it was convenient to accept this designation despite its tenuousness because this decision allowed minimal disruption to the already-confused nomenclature of the species. The even more senior species synonym of californiana ("californian" – Quoy & Gaimard, 1824a[11]) is considered a nomen oblitum ("forgotten name").[34]
Previously, the Galápagos tortoise was considered to belong to the genus Geochelone, known as typical tortoises or terrestrial turtles. Subsequently, subgenus Chelonoidis was elevated to generic status based on phylogenetic evidence which grouped the South American members of Geochelone into an independent clade (branch of the tree of life).[35] This nomenclature has been adopted by several authorities.[1][2][36][37]
Subspecies
Main article: Subspecies of Galápagos tortoise
There were probably 10 subspecies of Chelonoidis nigra, although some recognise up to 15 subspecies.[38] Only seven subspecies now exist in the wild, one on Santiago, Santa Cruz, San Cristóbal, Pinzón and Española, and two on Isabela. An eighth surviving subspecies, abingdoni from Pinta Island, is considered extinct in the wild and is represented by a single living specimen, "Lonesome George". The subspecies inhabiting Floreana island (C. n. nigra) is thought to have been hunted to extinction by 1850,[39][40] only years after Charles Darwin's landmark visit of 1835 in which he saw shells but no live tortoises on the island.[41] The phantastica subspecies of Fernandina is of disputed existence as it was described from a single specimen which may have been an artificial introduction to the island.[42][43][44]
Prior to widespread knowledge of the differences between the populations (sometimes called races) from different islands and volcanoes, captive collections in zoos were indiscriminately mixed. Fertile offspring resulted from pairings of animals from different races, confirming that they are subspecies and not distinct species. However, captive crosses between tortoises from different races have lower fertility and higher mortality than those between tortoises of the same race[45][46] and captives in mixed herds normally direct courtship only toward members of the same race.[46]
The valid scientific names of each of the individual populations are not universally accepted,[10][43][47][48] and some researchers consider each subspecies to be a full species.[49][50] The taxonomic status of the various races is not fully resolved.[51]
A map of the Galápagos with labels for names of the islands and their native subspecies of tortoise.
Galápagos archipelago annotated with ranges of currently recognised subspecies of Galápagos tortoise. Islands with surviving subspecies are shaded.
[edit] Evolutionary history
All subspecies of Galápagos tortoise evolved from common ancestors that arrived from mainland South America by overwater dispersal. The minimal founding population was a pregnant female or a breeding pair.[29] Survival on the 1000-km oceanic journey is accounted for by the fact that the tortoises are buoyant, can breathe by extending their necks above the water, and are able to survive months without food or fresh water. As they are poor swimmers, the journey was probably a passive one facilitated by the Humboldt Current, which diverts westwards towards the Galápagos Islands from the mainland.[38]
The closest living relative (though not a direct ancestor) of the Galápagos giant tortoise is the Argentine tortoise (Chelonoidis chilensis), a much smaller species from South America. The divergence between C. chilensis and C. nigra probably occurred 6–12 million years ago, an evolutionary event preceding the volcanic formation of the oldest modern Galápagos Islands 5 million years ago.[52] Mitochondrial DNA analysis indicates that the oldest existing islands (Española and San Cristóbal) were colonised first, and that these populations seeded the younger islands via dispersal in a "stepping stone" fashion via local currents.[53][54] Restricted gene flow between isolated islands then resulted in the independent evolution of the populations into the divergent forms observed in the modern subspecies. The evolutionary relationships between the subspecies thus echo the volcanic history of the islands.[29]
[edit] Subspecies genetics
Modern DNA methods have revealed new information on the relationships between the subspecies:
Isabela Island
A distinct population was once thought to inhabit each of the five main volcanoes of the largest island Isabela: (Wolf, Darwin, Alcedo, Sierra Negra, and Cerro Azul). The four southern populations on Isabela, though separated from each other by barren stretches of lava between volcanoes, are in fact a single genetic unit derived from colonists from Santa Cruz. The genetically distinct Volcán Wolf subspecies in northern Isabela (becki) is probably the result of a separate colonisation event from Santiago.[29] Tortoises from Sierra Negra in southern Isabela (formerly guentheri) are possibly the ancestral source of dispersal to the volcanoes Darwin (formely microphyes), Alcedo (formerly vandenburghi) and Cerro Azul (vicina).[55] On this basis, the southern populations on Isabela may be considered as a single subspecies vicina, with morphological differences attributable to age, sex or local environment.[56]
Floreana Island
Phylogenetic analysis may help to "resurrect" the extinct subspecies of Floreana (nigra). The subspecies was only known from subfossil remains.[40] Some tortoises from Isabela were found to be a partial match for the genetic profile of Floreana specimens from museum collections, possibly indicating the presence of hybrids from a population transposed by humans from Floreana to Isabela[50] speculated to be caused either by deliberate moving between the islands[57] or from individuals thrown overboard ships to lighten loads.[18] Nine Floreana descendants have been identified in the captive population of the Fausto Llerena Breeding Center on Santa Cruz. This permits the possibility of re-establishing a reconstructed subspecies from selective breeding of the hybrid animals.[58]
Pinta Island
The Pinta Island subspecies (abingdoni, now extinct in the wild) is most closely related to the subspecies on the islands of San Cristóbal (chathamensis) and Española (hoodensis) which lie over 300 kilometres (190 mi) away,[29] rather than neighbouring Isabela as previously assumed. This relationship is attributable to dispersal by the strong local current from San Cristóbal towards Pinta.[59] The discovery informed further attempts for the preservation of the abingdoni lineage and the search for an appropriate mate for Lonesome George, who had been penned with females from Isabela.[60] This hope was bolstered by the discovery of an abingdoni hybrid male in the Volcán Wolf population on northern Isabela, raising the possibility that there are more living undiscovered Pinta descendants.[61]
Santa Cruz Island
Mitochondrial DNA studies of tortoises on Santa Cruz show up to three genetically distinct lineages found in non-overlapping population distributions around the regions of Cerro Monturra, Cerro Fatal and La Caseta.[62] Although currently united in a single subspecies (porteri), the lineages are all more closely related to tortoises on other islands than to each other;[63] Cerro Monturra tortoises are most closely related to duncanensis from Pinzón, Cerro Fatal to chathamensis from San Cristóbal, and La Caseta to the four southern races of Isabela.[64]
Subspecies of doubtful existence
Subspecies were described from three other islands, but their existence is based on scant evidence. The purported Rabida island subspecies (wallacei) was described from a single specimen removed by the Academy of Sciences in 1906,[32] which has since been lost. This individual was probably an artificial introduction from another island that was originally penned on Rabida next to a good anchorage, as no contemporary whaling or sealing logs mention removing tortoises from this island.[44] The phantastica subspecies from Fernandina is known from a single specimen from the voyage of 1906, an old male.[32] No other tortoises or remains have been found on the island, suggesting the specimen was an artificial introduction from elsewhere.[43][44][57] Fernandina has neither human settlements nor feral mammals, so if this subspecies ever did exist its extinction must have been by natural means, such as volcanic activity.[43] The Santa Fe subspecies has no binomial name, having been described from the limited evidence of bone fragments (but no shells, the most durable part) of 14 individuals, old eggs and old dung found on the island in 1906.[32] The island has never been inhabited by man nor had any introduced predators.[57] The remains are considered artificial introductions,[43] possibly from camping at the good anchorage on the island.[57]
[edit] Description
The tortoises have a large bony shell (carapace) of a dull brown colour. The plates of the carapace are fused with the ribs in a rigid protective structure that is integral to the skeleton. Lichens can grow on the shells of the slow-moving animals.[65] Tortoises keep a characteristic scute (shell segment) pattern on their shell throughout life, though the annual growth bands are not useful for determining age, because the outer layers are worn off with time. A tortoise can withdraw its head, neck and forelimbs into its shell for protection. The legs are large, stumpy, with dry scaly skin and hard scales. The front legs are five-clawed, and the back legs are four-clawed.[32]
[edit] Gigantism
The discoverer of the Galápagos Islands, Fray Tomás de Berlanga, Bishop of Panama, wrote in 1535 of "such big tortoises that each could carry a man on top of himself."[66] Naturalist Charles Darwin remarked after his trip three centuries later in 1835, "These animals grow to an immense size ... several so large that it required six or eight men to lift them from the ground".[67] The largest recorded individuals have reached weights of over 400 kilograms (882 lb)[68] and lengths of 1.87 meters (6 ft).[69][3] The tortoises' gigantism was probably a preadapted condition for successful colonisation of these remote oceanic islands rather than an example of evolved insular gigantism. Large tortoises would have a greater chance of surviving the journey over water from the mainland as they can hold their heads a greater height above the water level and have a surface area/volume ratio, which reduces osmotic water loss. Their significant water and fat reserves would allow the tortoises to survive long ocean crossings without food or fresh water, and to endure the drought-prone climate of the islands. A larger size allowed them to better tolerate extremes of temperature due to gigantothermy.[70] Fossil giant tortoises from mainland South America have been described that support this hypothesis of preadapted gigantism.[71]
[edit] Shell shape
Galápagos tortoise shell varieties
A tortoise of the abingdoni subspecies. It has a distinctively saddle shaped shell that flares above the neck and limbs.
Saddleback (abingdoni)
A tortoise of the chathamensis subspecies. It has a slightly saddle shaped shell.
Intermediate (chathamensis)
A tortoise of the porteri subspecies. It has a rounded shell shaped like a dome.
Domed (porteri)
Galapágos tortoises are the only lineage of giant tortoise exhibiting different types of shell shape.[63] They exhibit a spectrum of carapace morphology ranging from "saddleback" (denoting upward arching of the front edge of the shell resembling a saddle) to "domed" (denoting a rounded convex surface resembling a dome). When saddleback tortoises withdraw their head and forelimbs into their shells, a large unprotected gap remains over their neck, evidence of the lack of predation during the evolution of this structure. There is no saddleback/domed dualism, as tortoises can be of intermediate type with characteristics of both. Larger islands with humid highlands over 800 metres (2,600 ft) in elevation, such as Santa Cruz have abundant vegetation near the ground.[48] Native tortoises in these environments tend to have domed shells and are larger, with shorter necks and limbs. Saddleback tortoises originate from small islands less than 500 metres (1,600 ft) in elevation with dry habitats (e.g. Española and Pinzón) that are more limited in food and other resources.[38]
Evolutionary implications
In combination with proportionally longer necks and limbs,[32] the unusual saddleback carapace structure is thought to be an adaptation to increase vertical reach, which enables the tortoise to browse tall vegetation, such as the Opuntia (prickly pear) cactus that grows in arid environments.[72] Saddlebacks are more territorial[69][73] and smaller than domed varieties, possibly adaptations to their limited resources. Alternatively, larger tortoises may be better-suited to high elevations, because they can resist the cooler temperatures when there is cloud cover or fog.[47]
A competing hypothesis is that rather than being principally a feeding adaptation, the distinctive saddle shape and longer extremities might have been a secondary sexual characteristic of saddleback males. Male competition over mates is settled by dominance displays on the basis of vertical neck height rather than body size[47] (see below). This correlates with the observation that saddleback males are more aggressive than domed males.[74] The shell distortion and elongation of the limbs and neck in saddlebacks is probably the evolutionary compromise between the need for a small body size in dry conditions and a high vertical reach for dominance displays.[47]
The saddleback carapace probably evolved independently several times in dry habitats,[69] since genetic similarity between populations does not correspond to carapace shape.[75] Saddleback tortoises are therefore not necessarily more closely related to each other than to domed counterparts, as shape is not determined by a similar genetic background, but by a similar ecological one.[47]
Sexual dimorphism
Sexual dimorphism is most pronounced in saddleback populations, in which males have more angled and higher front openings, giving a more extreme saddled appearance.[74] Males of all varieties generally have a longer tail and a shorter, concave undershell with thickened knobs at the back edge to facilitate mating. Males are larger than females: adult males weigh around 272–317 kilograms (600–700 lb) while females are 136–181 kilograms (300–400 lb).[47]
[edit] Behaviour
A tortoise semi-submerged in a green outdoor pool full of algae
A tortoise bathing in a pool
Routine
The tortoises are ectothermic (cold-blooded) and therefore bask for 1–2 hours after dawn to absorb the sun's heat through their dark shells before actively foraging for 8–9 hours a day.[43] They travel mostly in the early morning or late afternoon between resting and grazing areas. They have been observed to walk at a speed of 0.3 kilometres per hour (0.2 mph).[67]
On the larger and more humid islands, the tortoises seasonally migrate down between low elevations, which become grassy plains in the wet season, to meadowed areas of higher elevation (up to 2,000 ft[32]) in the dry season. The same routes have been used for many generations, creating well-defined paths through the undergrowth known as "tortoise highways".[48] On these wetter islands, the domed tortoises are gregarious and often found in large herds, in contrast to the more solitary and territorial disposition of the saddleback tortoises.
Tortoises sometimes rest in mud wallows or rain-formed pools, which may be both a thermoregulatory response during cool nights, and a protection from parasites such as mosquitoes and ticks.[48] Parasites are countered by taking dust baths in loose soil. Tortoises have been noted to shelter at night under overhanging rocks.[76] Other tortoises are observed to sleep in a snug depression in the earth or brush called a "pallet". Local tortoises using the same pallet sites, such as on Volcán Alcedo, results in the formation of small sandy pits.[77]
Diet
An adult tortoise with a mouthful of green leaves.
A tortoise feeding
The tortoises are herbivores that consume a diet of cacti, grasses, leaves, lichens, and berries. They have been documented to feed on Hippomane mancinella ('poison apple'), the endemic guava Psidium galapageium, the water fern Azolla microphylla, and the bromeliad Tillandsia insularis.[78] A tortoise eats an average of 32–36 kilograms (70–80 lb) per day, though inefficient digestion means that much of this passes through without nutritional extraction.[79]
Tortoises acquire most of their moisture from the dew and sap in vegetation (particularly the Opuntia cactus); therefore, they can spend long periods without drinking water. They can endure 18 months when deprived of all food and water,[80] surviving by breaking down their body fat to produce water as a by-product. When thirsty they may drink large quantities of water very quickly, storing it in their bladders and the "root of the neck" (the pericardium[43]), both of which used to make them useful water sources on ships.[80] On arid islands, tortoises lick morning dew from boulders, and the repeated action over many generations has formed half-sphere depressions in the rock.[43]
Senses
Regarding their senses, Charles Darwin observed that: "The inhabitants believe that these animals are absolutely deaf; certainly they do not overhear a person walking near behind them. I was always amused, when overtaking one of these great monsters as it was quietly pacing along, to see how suddenly, the instant I passed, it would draw in its head and legs, and uttering a deep hiss fall to the ground with a heavy sound, as if struck dead."[67] Although they are not deaf,[32] tortoises depend far more on vision and smell as stimuli.[48]
Mutualism
Tortoises share a mutualistic relationship with some species of Galápagos finch and mockingbirds. Small groups of finches initiate the process by hopping on the ground in an exaggerated fashion facing the tortoise. The tortoise signals it is ready by rising up and extending its neck and legs, enabling the birds to reach otherwise inaccessible spots on the tortoise's body such as the neck, rear legs, cloacal opening, and skin between plastron and carapace. The birds benefit from the food source and the tortoises get rid of irritating ectoparasites.[81]
Some tortoises have been observed to insidiously exploit this mutualistic relationship. After rising and extending its limbs, the bird may go beneath the tortoise to investigate, whereupon suddenly the tortoise withdraws its limbs to drop flat and kill the bird. It then steps back to eat the bird, presumably to supplement its diet with protein.[82]
Mating
Two tortoises with their necks extended.
A pair of tortoises engaging in a dominance display
Mating occurs at any time of the year, although it does have seasonal peaks between February and June in the humid uplands during the rainy season.[48] When mature males meet in the mating season they will face each other in a ritualised dominance display, rise up on their legs and stretch up their necks with their mouths gaping open. Occasionally, head-biting occurs, but usually the shorter tortoise will back off, conceding mating rights to the victor. The behaviour is most pronounced in saddleback subspecies, which are more aggressive and have longer necks.[74]
The prelude to mating can be very aggressive, as the male forcefully rams the female's shell with his own and nips her legs.[20] Mounting is an awkward process and the male must stretch and tense to maintain equilibrium in a slanting position. The concave underside of the male's shell helps him to balance when straddled over the female's shell, and brings his cloacal vent (which houses the penis) closer to the female's dilated cloaca. During mating, the male vocalises with hoarse bellows and grunts,[76] described as "rhythmic groans".[48] This is one of the few vocalisations the tortoise makes; other noises are made during aggressive encounters, when struggling to right themselves, and hissing as they withdraw into their shells due to the forceful expulsion of air.[83]
A tour guide holds up a tortoise egg and a small tortoise. The egg comfortably rests in the palm of a hand. It is spherical and the size of a billiard ball. It has a smooth white surface with a light layer of dirt on it. The tortoise is held by the other hand, above the egg. The width of the tortoise is only marginally wider than the egg.
A young tortoise and a tortoise egg
Egg-laying
Females then journey up to several kilometres in July to November to reach nesting areas of dry, sandy coast. Nest digging is a tiring and elaborate task which may take the female several hours a day over many days to complete.[48] It is carried out blindly using only the hind legs to dig a 30 cm (12 in) deep cylindrical hole, into which she lays up to sixteen spherical, hard-shelled eggs ranging from 82 to 157 grams (2.9 to 5.5 oz) in mass,[43] and the size of a billiard ball.[65] Some observations suggest that the average clutch size for domed populations (9.6 per clutch for porteri on Santa Cruz) is larger than that of saddlebacks (4.6 per clutch for duncanensis on Pinzón).[44] The female makes a muddy plug for the nest hole out of soil mixed with urine, seals the nest by pressing down firmly with her plastron, and leaves them to be incubated by the sun. Females may lay 1–4 clutches per season. Temperature plays a role in the sex of the hatchling, with lower temperature nests producing more males and higher temperature nests producing more females. This is related closely to incubation time, since clutches laid early will incubate during the cool season and have longer incubation periods (producing more males), while nests that are laid later incubate for a shorter period in the hot season (producing more females).[84]
Early life and maturation
Young animals emerge from the nest after four to eight months and may weigh only 50 grams (1.8 oz) and measure 6 centimetres (2.4 in).[48] When the young tortoises emerge from their shells, they must dig their way to the surface, which can take up several weeks, though their yolk sac can sustain them for up to seven months.[65] In particularly dry conditions, the hatchlings may die underground if they are encased by hardened soil, while flooding of the nest area can drown them. Subspecies are initially indistinguishable as they all have domed carapaces. The young stay in warmer lowland areas for their first 10–15 years,[43] encountering hazards such as falling into cracks, being crushed by falling rock, or excessive heat stress. The Galápagos Hawk was formerly the sole native predator of the tortoise hatchlings, as Darwin wrote: "The young tortoises, as soon as they are hatched, fall prey in great numbers to the buzzard".[67] The hawk is now much rarer, but introduced feral pigs, dogs, cats and black rats have become predators of eggs and young tortoises.[85] The adult tortoises have no natural predators apart from humans, as Darwin noted: "The old ones seem generally to die from accidents, as from falling down precipices. At least several of the inhabitants told me, they had never found one dead without some such apparent cause".[67]
Sex can be determined only when the tortoise is about 15 years old, and sexual maturity is reached at around 20–25 years in captivity, possibly 40 years in the wild (when they reach their full size). Life expectancy in the wild is thought to be over 100 years,[86][87] making it one of the longest lived species in the animal kingdom. Harriet was the oldest known Galápagos tortoise, having reached an estimated age of more than 170 years before her death in 2006 in Australia Zoo.[88] Chambers notes that Harriet was probably 169 years old in 2004. The individual died in 2006 (although media outlets claimed the greater age of 175 based on a less reliable timeline.[89]
[edit] Darwin's development of theory of evolution
Three quarter length portrait of Darwin aged about 30, with straight brown hair receding from his high forehead and long side-whiskers, smiling quietly, in wide lapelled jacket, waistcoat and high collar with cravat.
Charles Darwin as a young man, probably subsequent to the Galápagos visit
Charles Darwin visited the Galápagos for five weeks on the second voyage of HMS Beagle in 1835 and saw Galápagos tortoises on San Cristobal (Chatham) and Santiago (James) Islands.[90] They appeared several times in his writings and journals, and played a role in the development of the theory of evolution.
Darwin wrote in his account of the voyage:
"I have not as yet noticed by far the most remarkable feature in the natural history of this archipelago; it is, that the different islands to a considerable extent are inhabited by a different set of beings. My attention was first called to this fact by the Vice-Governor, Mr. Lawson, declaring that the tortoises differed from the different islands, and that he could with certainty tell from which island any one was brought ... The inhabitants, as I have said, state that they can distinguish the tortoises from the different islands; and that they differ not only in size, but in other characters. Captain Porter has described* those from Charles and from the nearest island to it, namely, Hood Island, as having their shells in front thick and turned up like a Spanish saddle, while the tortoises from James Island are rounder, blacker, and have a better taste when cooked."[91]
The significance of the differences in tortoises between islands did not strike him as important until it was too late, as he continued,
"I did not for some time pay sufficient attention to this statement, and I had already partially mingled together the collections from two of the islands. I never dreamed that islands, about fifty or sixty miles apart, and most of them in sight of each other, formed of precisely the same rocks, placed under a quite similar climate, rising to a nearly equal height, would have been differently tenanted".[91]
Although the Beagle departed from the Galápagos with over 30 adult tortoises on deck, these were not for scientific study but a source of fresh meat for their Pacific crossing. Their shells and bones were thrown overboard, leaving no remains with which to test any hypotheses.[92] It has been suggested[93] that this oversight was made because Darwin only reported seeing tortoises on San Cristóbal[94] (chathamensis) and Santiago[95] (darwini), both of which have an intermediate type of shell shape and are not particularly morphologically distinct from each other. Though he did visit Floreana, the nigra subspecies found there was already nearly extinct and he was unlikely to have seen any mature animals.[41]
Line drawing of the HMS Beagle by F. G. King, a colleague of Darwin's. Galápagos tortoises were stacked in the lower hold.
Darwin did however have four live juvenile specimens to compare from different islands. These were pet tortoises taken by himself (from San Salvador), his captain FitzRoy (two from Española) and his servant Syms Covington (from Floreana).[96] Unfortunately they could not help to determine whether each island had its own variety because the specimens were not mature enough to exhibit morphological differences.[97] Although the British Museum had a few specimens, their provenance within the Galápagos was unknown.[98] However, conversations with the naturalist Gabriel Bibron, who had seen the mature tortoises of the Paris Natural History Museum confirmed to Darwin that there were distinct varieties.[99]
Darwin later compared the different tortoise forms with those of mockingbirds, in the first[100] tentative statement linking his observations from the Galapagos with the possibility of species transmuting:
"When I recollect the fact that [from] the form of the body, shape of scales and general size, the Spaniards can at once pronounce from which island any tortoise may have been brought; when I see these islands in sight of each other and possessed of but a scanty stock of animals, tenanted by these birds, but slightly differing in structure and filling the same place in nature; I must suspect they are only varieties ... If there is the slightest foundation for these remarks, the zoology of archipelagos will be well worth examining; for such facts would undermine the stability of species."[101]
His views on the mutability of species were restated in his notebooks: "animals on separate islands ought to become different if kept long enough apart with slightly differing circumstances. – Now Galapagos Tortoises, Mocking birds, Falkland Fox, Chiloe fox, – Inglish and Irish Hare."[102] These observations served as counterexamples to the prevailing contemporary view that species were individually created.
Darwin also found these "antediluvian animals"[94] to be a source of diversion: "I frequently got on their backs, and then giving a few raps on the hinder part of their shells, they would rise up and walk away;—but I found it very difficult to keep my balance".[67]
[edit] Conservation
Several waves of human exploitation of the tortoises as a food source caused a decline in the total wild population from around 250,000[87] when first discovered in the 16th century to a low of 3,060 individuals in a 1974 census. Modern conservation efforts have subsequently brought tortoise numbers up to 19,317 (estimate for 1995–2009).[103]
The subspecies C. n. nigra became extinct by human exploitation in the 19th century. Another subspecies, C. n. abingdoni, is now extinct in the wild and represented in captivity by a single male specimen, Lonesome George. It is the only known living specimen of the Pinta Island tortoise and the world's "rarest living creature".[104] All the other surviving subspecies are listed by the IUCN as at least "Vulnerable" in conservation status, if not worse.
[edit] Historical exploitation
An estimated 200,000 animals were taken before the 20th century.[43] The relatively immobile and defenceless tortoises were collected and stored live on board ships, where they could survive for at least a year without food or water (some anecdotal reports suggest individuals surviving two years[105]), providing valuable fresh meat, while their diluted urine and water stored in their neck bags could be used as drinking water. The 17th century British pirate, explorer and naturalist William Dampier wrote that "They are so extraordinarily large and fat, and so sweet, that no pullet eats more pleasantly,"[106] while Captain James Colnett of the British Navy wrote of "the land tortoise which in whatever way it was dressed, was considered by all of us as the most delicious food we had ever tasted."[107] US Navy captain David Porter declared that, "after once tasting the Gallipagos tortoises, every other animal food fell off greatly in our estimation ... The meat of this animal is the easiest of digestion, and a quantity of it, exceeding that of any other food, can be eaten without experiencing the slightest of inconvenience."[80] Darwin was less enthusiastic about tortoise meat, writing "the breast-plate roasted (as the Gauchos do "carne con cuero"), with the flesh on it, is very good; and the young tortoises make excellent soup; but otherwise the meat to my taste is indifferent."[108]
In the 17th century, pirates started to use the Galápagos Islands as a base for resupply, restocking on food, water and repairing vessels before attacking Spanish colonies on the South American mainland. However, the Galápagos tortoises did not struggle for survival at this point because the islands were distant to busy shipping routes and harboured few valuable natural resources. As such they remained unclaimed by any nation, uninhabited and uncharted. In comparison, the tortoises of the islands in the Indian Ocean were already facing extinction by the late 17th century.[109]
Between the 1790s and the 1860s, whaling ships and fur-sealers systematically collected tortoises in far greater numbers than the buccaneers preceding them.[110] They were used for food and many more were killed for high grade "turtle oil" from the late 19th century onward for lucrative sale to continental Ecuador.[111] A total of over 13,000 tortoises is recorded in the logs of whaling ships between 1831 and 1868, and an estimated 100,000 were taken before 1830.[105] Since it was easiest to collect tortoises around coastal zones, females were most vulnerable to depletion during the nesting season. The collection by whalers came to a halt eventually through a combination of the scarcity of tortoises that they had created and the competition from crude oil as a cheaper energy source.[112]
Population decline accelerated with the early settlement of the islands in the early 19th century leading to unregulated hunting for meat, habitat clearance for agriculture and the introduction of alien mammal species.[44] Feral pigs, dogs, cats and black rats have become predators of eggs and young tortoises, whilst goats, donkeys and cattle compete for grazing and trample nest sites. The extinction of the Floreana subspecies in the mid-19th century has been attributed to the combined pressures of hunting for the penal colony on the relatively small island, the conversion of the grazing highlands into land for farming and fruit plantations, and the introduction of feral mammals.[113]
Scientific collection expeditions took 661 tortoises between 1888 and 1930, and more than 120 tortoises have been taken by poachers since 1990. Threats continue today with the rapid expansion of the tourist industry and increasing size of human settlements on the islands.[114]
[edit] Modern conservation
The remaining subspecies of tortoise range in IUCN classification from extinct in the wild to vulnerable. Slow growth rate, late sexual maturity and island endemism make the tortoises particularly prone to extinction without the efforts of conservationists.[63] The Galápagos giant tortoise has become a flagship species for conservation efforts throughout the Galápagos.
Two Galápagos tortoises occupy the foreground, apparently unconcerned by the presence of several tourists a few feet behind them. The tourists wear assorted sunglasses and sunhats, and most are taking pictures of the tortoises with their digital cameras.
Tourists see tortoises at the Charles Darwin Research station.
Legal protection
The Galápagos giant tortoise is now strictly protected and is listed on Appendix I of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora.[37] The listing requires that trade in the taxon and its products are subject to strict regulation by ratifying states, and international trade for primarily commercial purposes is prohibited. In 1936 the Ecuadorian government listed the giant tortoise as a protected species. In 1959, it declared all uninhabited areas in the Galápagos to be a National Park[115] and established the Charles Darwin Foundation. In 1970, capturing or removing many species from the islands (including tortoises and their eggs) was banned.[116] To halt trade in the tortoises altogether, it became illegal to export the tortoises from Ecuador, captive or wild, continental or insular in provenance. The banning of their exportation resulted in automatic prohibition of importation to the United States under Public Law 91-135 (1969).[117] A 1971 Ecuadorian decree made it illegal to damage, remove, alter or disturb any organism, rock or other natural object in the National Park.[118]
Captive breeding
Breeding and releasing programs began in 1965 and have successfully brought seven of the eight endangered subspecies up to less perilous population levels. Young tortoises are raised at several breeding centres across the islands to improve their survival during their vulnerable early development. Eggs are collected from threatened nesting sites, and the hatched young are given a head start by being kept in captivity for four to five years to reach a size with a much better chance of survival to adulthood before release onto their native ranges.[85][103]
The most significant population recovery was that of the Española Tortoise (hoodensis), which was saved from near-certain extinction. The population had been depleted to 3 males and 12 females that had been so widely dispersed that no mating in the wild had occurred.[119] They were brought to the Charles Darwin Research Station in 1971 for a captive breeding program.[120] In the following 33 years, these 15 tortoises gave rise to over 1,200 tortoises released onto their home island, which themselves have begun to reproduce naturally.[121][122]
Island restoration
The Galápagos National Park Service systematically culls feral predators and competitors. Goat eradication on islands including Pinta was achieved by the technique of using "Judas" goats with electronic collars to locate the herds. Marksmen shot all the goats except the Judas, then returned weeks later to find the "Judas" and shoot the herd to which it had relocated, repeating until only the "Judas" remained, which was then killed.[123] Other measures have included dog eradication from San Cristóbal, and fencing off nests to protect them from feral pigs.[85]
Efforts are now underway to repopulate islands formerly inhabited by tortoises in order to restore their ecosystems (island restoration) to their pre-human condition. The tortoises are a keystone species, acting as ecosystem engineers[123] which help in plant seed dispersal, trampling down brush and thinning the understory of vegetation (allowing light to penetrate and germination to occur). Birds such as flycatchers perch on and fly around tortoises in order to hunt the insects they displace from the brush.[65] In May 2010, 39 sterilised tortoises of hybrid origin were introduced to Pinta Island, the first tortoises there since the evacuation of Lonesome George 38 years ago in 1972.[124] Sterile tortoises were released so that the problem of interbreeding between subspecies would be avoided if any fertile tortoises were to be released in the future. It is hoped that with the recent identification of a hybrid abingdoni tortoise, the approximate genetic constitution of the original inhabitants of Pinta may eventually be restored with the identification and relocation of appropriate specimens to this island.[61] This approach may be used to "re-tortoise" Floreana in the future, since captive individuals have been found to be descended from the extinct original stock.[58]
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Galápagos tortoise
Adult Galápagos tortoise
Conservation status
Vulnerable (IUCN 2.3) [1]
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Testudines
Suborder: Cryptodira
Family: Testudinidae
Genus: Chelonoidis
Species: C. nigra
Binomial name
Chelonoidis nigra[2]
(Quoy & Gaimard, 1824b[3])
Subspecies
Subspecies[1] [show]
See: Subspecies of Galápagos tortoise
* C. n. abingdoni (Extinct in the wild)
Günther, 1877[4]
* C. n. becki
Rothschild, 1901[5]
* C. n. chathamensis
Van Denburgh, 1907[6]
* C. n. darwini
Van Denburgh, 1907[6]
* C. n. duncanensis
Garman, 1917[7]
* C. n. hoodensis
Van Denburgh, 1907[6]
* C. n. nigra (Extinct)
Quoy & Gaimard, 1824b[3]
* C. n. phantastica (Extinct)
Van Denburgh, 1907[6]
* C. n. porteri
Rothschild, 1903[8]
* C. n. vicina
Günther, 1875[9]
Synonyms
Species synonymy[10] [show]
* Testudo californiana
Quoy & Gaimard, 1824a[11] (nomen oblitum)
* Testudo nigra
Quoy & Gaimard, 1824b[3] (nomen novum)
* Testudo elephantopus
Harlan, 1827[12] (nomen dubium)
* Testudo nigrita
Duméril and Bibron, 1834[13] (nomen dubium)
* Testudo planiceps
Gray, 1853[14] (nomen dubium)
* Testudo clivosa
Garman, 1917[7] (nomen dubium)
* Testudo typica
Garman, 1917[7] (nomen dubium)
* Testudo (Chelonoidis) elephantopus
Williams, 1952[15]
* Geochelone (Chelonoidis) elephantopus
Pritchard, 1967[16]
* Chelonoidis elephantopus
Bour, 1980[17]
Subspecies synonymy[2] [show]
C. n. nigra (nominate subspecies)
* Testudo californiana
Quoy & Gaimard, 1824a[11] (nomen oblitum)
* Testudo nigra
Quoy & Gaimard, 1824b[3] (nomen novum)
* Testudo galapagoensis
Baur 1889[18]
C. n. abingdoni
* Testudo ephippium
Günther, 1875[9] (partim, misidentified type specimen once erroneously attributed to what is now C. n. duncanensis)
* Testudo abingdoni
Günther, 1877[4]
C. n. becki
* Testudo becki
Rothschild, 1901[5]
C. n. chathamensis
* Testudo wallacei
Rothschild 1902[19] (partim, nomen dubium)
* Testudo chathamensis
Van Denburgh, 1907[6]
C. n. darwini
* Testudo wallacei
Rothschild 1902[19] (partim, nomen dubium)
* Testudo darwini
Van Denburgh, 1907[6]
C. n. duncanensis
* Testudo ephippium
Günther, 1875[9] (partim, misidentified type)
* Geochelone nigra duncanensis
Garman, 1917[7] in Pritchard, 1996[10](nomen nudum)
C. n. hoodensis
* Testudo hoodensis
Van Denburgh, 1907[6]
C. n. phantastica
* Testudo phantasticus
Van Denburgh, 1907[6]
C. n. porteri
* Testudo nigrita
Duméril and Bibron, 1834[13] (nomen dubium)
* Testudo porteri
Rothschild, 1903[8]
C. n. vicina
* Testudo microphyes
Günther, 1875[9]
* Testudo vicina
Günther, 1875[9]
* Testudo güntheri
Baur, 1889[18]
* Testudo macrophyes
Garman, 1917[7]
* Testudo vandenburghi
De Sola, R. 1930[20] (nomen nudum)
The Galápagos tortoise or Galápagos giant tortoise (Chelonoidis nigra) is the largest living species of tortoise, reaching weights of over 400 kg (880 lb) and lengths of over 1.8 meters (6 ft). With life spans in the wild of over 100 years, it is one of the longest-lived vertebrates. A captive individual lived at least 170 years.
The tortoise is native to seven of the Galápagos Islands, a volcanic archipelago about 1,000 km (620 mi) west of Ecuador. Spanish explorers who discovered the islands in the 16th century named them after the Spanish galápago, meaning tortoise.
Shell size and shape vary between populations. On islands with humid highlands, the tortoises are larger, with domed shells and short necks. On islands with dry lowlands, the tortoises are smaller, with "saddleback" shells and long necks. These island-to-island differences played a role in the inception of Charles Darwin's theory of evolution.
Tortoise numbers declined from over 250,000 in the 16th century to a low of around 3,000 in the 1970s. The decline was caused by hunting for tortoise meat and oil, habitat clearance for agriculture, and introduction of non-native animals such as rats, goats, and pigs. Seven subspecies of the original ten survive in the wild. An eighth subspecies (C. n. abingdoni) has only a single living individual, in captivity, nicknamed Lonesome George. Conservation efforts beginning in the 20th century have resulted in thousands of captive-bred juveniles being released onto their home islands, and it is estimated that numbers exceeded 19,000 at the start of the 21st century. Despite this rebound, the species as a whole is classified as "Vulnerable" by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).
Contents
[hide]
* 1 Taxonomy
* 2 Evolutionary history
o 2.1 Subspecies genetics
* 3 Description
o 3.1 Gigantism
o 3.2 Shell shape
* 4 Behaviour
* 5 Darwin's development of theory of evolution
* 6 Conservation
o 6.1 Historical exploitation
o 6.2 Modern conservation
* 7 Notes and references
* 8 External links
[edit] Taxonomy
Early classification
The Galápagos Islands were discovered in 1535, but first appeared on maps, of Gerardus Mercator and Abraham Ortelius, in about 1570.[21] The islands were named "Insulae de los Galopegos" (Islands of the Tortoises) in reference to the giant tortoises found there.[22][23][nb 1]
Initially, the giant tortoises of the Indian Ocean and those from the Galápagos were considered to be the same species. Naturalists thought that sailors had transported the tortoises.[24] In 1676, the pre-Linnaean authority Claude Perrault referred to both species as Tortue des Indes.[25] In 1783, Johann Gottlob Schneider classified all giant tortoises as Testudo indica ("Indian tortoise").[26] In 1812, August Friedrich Schweigger named them Testudo gigantea ("gigantic tortoise").[27] In 1834, André Marie Constant Duméril and Gabriel Bibron classified the Galápagos tortoises as a separate species, which they named Testudo nigrita ("black tortoise").[13]
Black and white photograph of Walter Rothschild straddling an adult Galápagos tortoise. Rothschild is a Victorian gentleman sporting a beard and top hat.
Walter Rothschild, cataloger of two Galápagos tortoise subspecies
Recognition of subpopulations
The first systematic survey of giant tortoises was by Albert Günther of the British Museum, in 1875.[9] Günther identified at least five distinct populations from the Galápagos, and three from the Indian Ocean islands. He expanded the list in 1877 to six from the Galápagos, four from the Seychelles, and four from the Mascarenes. Günther theorised that all the giant tortoises descended from a single ancestral population which spread by sunken land bridges.[28] This theory was later disproven by the understanding that the Galápagos, Seychelles and Mascarene islands are all of recent volcanic origin and therefore could not have been linked by land bridges. It is now thought that the Galápagos tortoises descended from an ancestor from South America.[29] The Indian Ocean tortoises derived from Madagascar.[30][31]
At the end of the 19th century, Georg Baur[18] and Walter Rothschild[5][8][19] recognised five more populations of Galápagos tortoise. In 1906, the Academy of Sciences collected specimens and gave them to John Van Denburgh for study. He identified four additional populations,[6] and proposed the existence of 15 species.[32] His list still guides the taxonomy of the Galápagos tortoise, though now ten populations are thought to have existed.[2]
Current species and genus names
The current species designation of nigra ("black" – Quoy & Gaimard, 1824b[3]) was resurrected in 1984[33] after it was discovered to be the senior synonym (an older taxonomic synonym taking historical precedence) for the then commonly used species name of elephantopus ("elephant footed" – Harlan, 1827[12]). The use of nigra is explained by Quoy and Gaimard's Latin description: "Testudo toto corpore nigro", meaning "tortoise with completely black body". Quoy and Gairmard described nigra from a living specimen, but there is no evidence that they knew of its accurate provenance within the Galápagos – the locality was in fact given as California. Garman proposed the linking of nigra with the extinct Floreana subspecies.[7] Later, Pritchard deemed it was convenient to accept this designation despite its tenuousness because this decision allowed minimal disruption to the already-confused nomenclature of the species. The even more senior species synonym of californiana ("californian" – Quoy & Gaimard, 1824a[11]) is considered a nomen oblitum ("forgotten name").[34]
Previously, the Galápagos tortoise was considered to belong to the genus Geochelone, known as typical tortoises or terrestrial turtles. Subsequently, subgenus Chelonoidis was elevated to generic status based on phylogenetic evidence which grouped the South American members of Geochelone into an independent clade (branch of the tree of life).[35] This nomenclature has been adopted by several authorities.[1][2][36][37]
Subspecies
Main article: Subspecies of Galápagos tortoise
There were probably 10 subspecies of Chelonoidis nigra, although some recognise up to 15 subspecies.[38] Only seven subspecies now exist in the wild, one on Santiago, Santa Cruz, San Cristóbal, Pinzón and Española, and two on Isabela. An eighth surviving subspecies, abingdoni from Pinta Island, is considered extinct in the wild and is represented by a single living specimen, "Lonesome George". The subspecies inhabiting Floreana island (C. n. nigra) is thought to have been hunted to extinction by 1850,[39][40] only years after Charles Darwin's landmark visit of 1835 in which he saw shells but no live tortoises on the island.[41] The phantastica subspecies of Fernandina is of disputed existence as it was described from a single specimen which may have been an artificial introduction to the island.[42][43][44]
Prior to widespread knowledge of the differences between the populations (sometimes called races) from different islands and volcanoes, captive collections in zoos were indiscriminately mixed. Fertile offspring resulted from pairings of animals from different races, confirming that they are subspecies and not distinct species. However, captive crosses between tortoises from different races have lower fertility and higher mortality than those between tortoises of the same race[45][46] and captives in mixed herds normally direct courtship only toward members of the same race.[46]
The valid scientific names of each of the individual populations are not universally accepted,[10][43][47][48] and some researchers consider each subspecies to be a full species.[49][50] The taxonomic status of the various races is not fully resolved.[51]
A map of the Galápagos with labels for names of the islands and their native subspecies of tortoise.
Galápagos archipelago annotated with ranges of currently recognised subspecies of Galápagos tortoise. Islands with surviving subspecies are shaded.
[edit] Evolutionary history
All subspecies of Galápagos tortoise evolved from common ancestors that arrived from mainland South America by overwater dispersal. The minimal founding population was a pregnant female or a breeding pair.[29] Survival on the 1000-km oceanic journey is accounted for by the fact that the tortoises are buoyant, can breathe by extending their necks above the water, and are able to survive months without food or fresh water. As they are poor swimmers, the journey was probably a passive one facilitated by the Humboldt Current, which diverts westwards towards the Galápagos Islands from the mainland.[38]
The closest living relative (though not a direct ancestor) of the Galápagos giant tortoise is the Argentine tortoise (Chelonoidis chilensis), a much smaller species from South America. The divergence between C. chilensis and C. nigra probably occurred 6–12 million years ago, an evolutionary event preceding the volcanic formation of the oldest modern Galápagos Islands 5 million years ago.[52] Mitochondrial DNA analysis indicates that the oldest existing islands (Española and San Cristóbal) were colonised first, and that these populations seeded the younger islands via dispersal in a "stepping stone" fashion via local currents.[53][54] Restricted gene flow between isolated islands then resulted in the independent evolution of the populations into the divergent forms observed in the modern subspecies. The evolutionary relationships between the subspecies thus echo the volcanic history of the islands.[29]
[edit] Subspecies genetics
Modern DNA methods have revealed new information on the relationships between the subspecies:
Isabela Island
A distinct population was once thought to inhabit each of the five main volcanoes of the largest island Isabela: (Wolf, Darwin, Alcedo, Sierra Negra, and Cerro Azul). The four southern populations on Isabela, though separated from each other by barren stretches of lava between volcanoes, are in fact a single genetic unit derived from colonists from Santa Cruz. The genetically distinct Volcán Wolf subspecies in northern Isabela (becki) is probably the result of a separate colonisation event from Santiago.[29] Tortoises from Sierra Negra in southern Isabela (formerly guentheri) are possibly the ancestral source of dispersal to the volcanoes Darwin (formely microphyes), Alcedo (formerly vandenburghi) and Cerro Azul (vicina).[55] On this basis, the southern populations on Isabela may be considered as a single subspecies vicina, with morphological differences attributable to age, sex or local environment.[56]
Floreana Island
Phylogenetic analysis may help to "resurrect" the extinct subspecies of Floreana (nigra). The subspecies was only known from subfossil remains.[40] Some tortoises from Isabela were found to be a partial match for the genetic profile of Floreana specimens from museum collections, possibly indicating the presence of hybrids from a population transposed by humans from Floreana to Isabela[50] speculated to be caused either by deliberate moving between the islands[57] or from individuals thrown overboard ships to lighten loads.[18] Nine Floreana descendants have been identified in the captive population of the Fausto Llerena Breeding Center on Santa Cruz. This permits the possibility of re-establishing a reconstructed subspecies from selective breeding of the hybrid animals.[58]
Pinta Island
The Pinta Island subspecies (abingdoni, now extinct in the wild) is most closely related to the subspecies on the islands of San Cristóbal (chathamensis) and Española (hoodensis) which lie over 300 kilometres (190 mi) away,[29] rather than neighbouring Isabela as previously assumed. This relationship is attributable to dispersal by the strong local current from San Cristóbal towards Pinta.[59] The discovery informed further attempts for the preservation of the abingdoni lineage and the search for an appropriate mate for Lonesome George, who had been penned with females from Isabela.[60] This hope was bolstered by the discovery of an abingdoni hybrid male in the Volcán Wolf population on northern Isabela, raising the possibility that there are more living undiscovered Pinta descendants.[61]
Santa Cruz Island
Mitochondrial DNA studies of tortoises on Santa Cruz show up to three genetically distinct lineages found in non-overlapping population distributions around the regions of Cerro Monturra, Cerro Fatal and La Caseta.[62] Although currently united in a single subspecies (porteri), the lineages are all more closely related to tortoises on other islands than to each other;[63] Cerro Monturra tortoises are most closely related to duncanensis from Pinzón, Cerro Fatal to chathamensis from San Cristóbal, and La Caseta to the four southern races of Isabela.[64]
Subspecies of doubtful existence
Subspecies were described from three other islands, but their existence is based on scant evidence. The purported Rabida island subspecies (wallacei) was described from a single specimen removed by the Academy of Sciences in 1906,[32] which has since been lost. This individual was probably an artificial introduction from another island that was originally penned on Rabida next to a good anchorage, as no contemporary whaling or sealing logs mention removing tortoises from this island.[44] The phantastica subspecies from Fernandina is known from a single specimen from the voyage of 1906, an old male.[32] No other tortoises or remains have been found on the island, suggesting the specimen was an artificial introduction from elsewhere.[43][44][57] Fernandina has neither human settlements nor feral mammals, so if this subspecies ever did exist its extinction must have been by natural means, such as volcanic activity.[43] The Santa Fe subspecies has no binomial name, having been described from the limited evidence of bone fragments (but no shells, the most durable part) of 14 individuals, old eggs and old dung found on the island in 1906.[32] The island has never been inhabited by man nor had any introduced predators.[57] The remains are considered artificial introductions,[43] possibly from camping at the good anchorage on the island.[57]
[edit] Description
The tortoises have a large bony shell (carapace) of a dull brown colour. The plates of the carapace are fused with the ribs in a rigid protective structure that is integral to the skeleton. Lichens can grow on the shells of the slow-moving animals.[65] Tortoises keep a characteristic scute (shell segment) pattern on their shell throughout life, though the annual growth bands are not useful for determining age, because the outer layers are worn off with time. A tortoise can withdraw its head, neck and forelimbs into its shell for protection. The legs are large, stumpy, with dry scaly skin and hard scales. The front legs are five-clawed, and the back legs are four-clawed.[32]
[edit] Gigantism
The discoverer of the Galápagos Islands, Fray Tomás de Berlanga, Bishop of Panama, wrote in 1535 of "such big tortoises that each could carry a man on top of himself."[66] Naturalist Charles Darwin remarked after his trip three centuries later in 1835, "These animals grow to an immense size ... several so large that it required six or eight men to lift them from the ground".[67] The largest recorded individuals have reached weights of over 400 kilograms (882 lb)[68] and lengths of 1.87 meters (6 ft).[69][3] The tortoises' gigantism was probably a preadapted condition for successful colonisation of these remote oceanic islands rather than an example of evolved insular gigantism. Large tortoises would have a greater chance of surviving the journey over water from the mainland as they can hold their heads a greater height above the water level and have a surface area/volume ratio, which reduces osmotic water loss. Their significant water and fat reserves would allow the tortoises to survive long ocean crossings without food or fresh water, and to endure the drought-prone climate of the islands. A larger size allowed them to better tolerate extremes of temperature due to gigantothermy.[70] Fossil giant tortoises from mainland South America have been described that support this hypothesis of preadapted gigantism.[71]
[edit] Shell shape
Galápagos tortoise shell varieties
A tortoise of the abingdoni subspecies. It has a distinctively saddle shaped shell that flares above the neck and limbs.
Saddleback (abingdoni)
A tortoise of the chathamensis subspecies. It has a slightly saddle shaped shell.
Intermediate (chathamensis)
A tortoise of the porteri subspecies. It has a rounded shell shaped like a dome.
Domed (porteri)
Galapágos tortoises are the only lineage of giant tortoise exhibiting different types of shell shape.[63] They exhibit a spectrum of carapace morphology ranging from "saddleback" (denoting upward arching of the front edge of the shell resembling a saddle) to "domed" (denoting a rounded convex surface resembling a dome). When saddleback tortoises withdraw their head and forelimbs into their shells, a large unprotected gap remains over their neck, evidence of the lack of predation during the evolution of this structure. There is no saddleback/domed dualism, as tortoises can be of intermediate type with characteristics of both. Larger islands with humid highlands over 800 metres (2,600 ft) in elevation, such as Santa Cruz have abundant vegetation near the ground.[48] Native tortoises in these environments tend to have domed shells and are larger, with shorter necks and limbs. Saddleback tortoises originate from small islands less than 500 metres (1,600 ft) in elevation with dry habitats (e.g. Española and Pinzón) that are more limited in food and other resources.[38]
Evolutionary implications
In combination with proportionally longer necks and limbs,[32] the unusual saddleback carapace structure is thought to be an adaptation to increase vertical reach, which enables the tortoise to browse tall vegetation, such as the Opuntia (prickly pear) cactus that grows in arid environments.[72] Saddlebacks are more territorial[69][73] and smaller than domed varieties, possibly adaptations to their limited resources. Alternatively, larger tortoises may be better-suited to high elevations, because they can resist the cooler temperatures when there is cloud cover or fog.[47]
A competing hypothesis is that rather than being principally a feeding adaptation, the distinctive saddle shape and longer extremities might have been a secondary sexual characteristic of saddleback males. Male competition over mates is settled by dominance displays on the basis of vertical neck height rather than body size[47] (see below). This correlates with the observation that saddleback males are more aggressive than domed males.[74] The shell distortion and elongation of the limbs and neck in saddlebacks is probably the evolutionary compromise between the need for a small body size in dry conditions and a high vertical reach for dominance displays.[47]
The saddleback carapace probably evolved independently several times in dry habitats,[69] since genetic similarity between populations does not correspond to carapace shape.[75] Saddleback tortoises are therefore not necessarily more closely related to each other than to domed counterparts, as shape is not determined by a similar genetic background, but by a similar ecological one.[47]
Sexual dimorphism
Sexual dimorphism is most pronounced in saddleback populations, in which males have more angled and higher front openings, giving a more extreme saddled appearance.[74] Males of all varieties generally have a longer tail and a shorter, concave undershell with thickened knobs at the back edge to facilitate mating. Males are larger than females: adult males weigh around 272–317 kilograms (600–700 lb) while females are 136–181 kilograms (300–400 lb).[47]
[edit] Behaviour
A tortoise semi-submerged in a green outdoor pool full of algae
A tortoise bathing in a pool
Routine
The tortoises are ectothermic (cold-blooded) and therefore bask for 1–2 hours after dawn to absorb the sun's heat through their dark shells before actively foraging for 8–9 hours a day.[43] They travel mostly in the early morning or late afternoon between resting and grazing areas. They have been observed to walk at a speed of 0.3 kilometres per hour (0.2 mph).[67]
On the larger and more humid islands, the tortoises seasonally migrate down between low elevations, which become grassy plains in the wet season, to meadowed areas of higher elevation (up to 2,000 ft[32]) in the dry season. The same routes have been used for many generations, creating well-defined paths through the undergrowth known as "tortoise highways".[48] On these wetter islands, the domed tortoises are gregarious and often found in large herds, in contrast to the more solitary and territorial disposition of the saddleback tortoises.
Tortoises sometimes rest in mud wallows or rain-formed pools, which may be both a thermoregulatory response during cool nights, and a protection from parasites such as mosquitoes and ticks.[48] Parasites are countered by taking dust baths in loose soil. Tortoises have been noted to shelter at night under overhanging rocks.[76] Other tortoises are observed to sleep in a snug depression in the earth or brush called a "pallet". Local tortoises using the same pallet sites, such as on Volcán Alcedo, results in the formation of small sandy pits.[77]
Diet
An adult tortoise with a mouthful of green leaves.
A tortoise feeding
The tortoises are herbivores that consume a diet of cacti, grasses, leaves, lichens, and berries. They have been documented to feed on Hippomane mancinella ('poison apple'), the endemic guava Psidium galapageium, the water fern Azolla microphylla, and the bromeliad Tillandsia insularis.[78] A tortoise eats an average of 32–36 kilograms (70–80 lb) per day, though inefficient digestion means that much of this passes through without nutritional extraction.[79]
Tortoises acquire most of their moisture from the dew and sap in vegetation (particularly the Opuntia cactus); therefore, they can spend long periods without drinking water. They can endure 18 months when deprived of all food and water,[80] surviving by breaking down their body fat to produce water as a by-product. When thirsty they may drink large quantities of water very quickly, storing it in their bladders and the "root of the neck" (the pericardium[43]), both of which used to make them useful water sources on ships.[80] On arid islands, tortoises lick morning dew from boulders, and the repeated action over many generations has formed half-sphere depressions in the rock.[43]
Senses
Regarding their senses, Charles Darwin observed that: "The inhabitants believe that these animals are absolutely deaf; certainly they do not overhear a person walking near behind them. I was always amused, when overtaking one of these great monsters as it was quietly pacing along, to see how suddenly, the instant I passed, it would draw in its head and legs, and uttering a deep hiss fall to the ground with a heavy sound, as if struck dead."[67] Although they are not deaf,[32] tortoises depend far more on vision and smell as stimuli.[48]
Mutualism
Tortoises share a mutualistic relationship with some species of Galápagos finch and mockingbirds. Small groups of finches initiate the process by hopping on the ground in an exaggerated fashion facing the tortoise. The tortoise signals it is ready by rising up and extending its neck and legs, enabling the birds to reach otherwise inaccessible spots on the tortoise's body such as the neck, rear legs, cloacal opening, and skin between plastron and carapace. The birds benefit from the food source and the tortoises get rid of irritating ectoparasites.[81]
Some tortoises have been observed to insidiously exploit this mutualistic relationship. After rising and extending its limbs, the bird may go beneath the tortoise to investigate, whereupon suddenly the tortoise withdraws its limbs to drop flat and kill the bird. It then steps back to eat the bird, presumably to supplement its diet with protein.[82]
Mating
Two tortoises with their necks extended.
A pair of tortoises engaging in a dominance display
Mating occurs at any time of the year, although it does have seasonal peaks between February and June in the humid uplands during the rainy season.[48] When mature males meet in the mating season they will face each other in a ritualised dominance display, rise up on their legs and stretch up their necks with their mouths gaping open. Occasionally, head-biting occurs, but usually the shorter tortoise will back off, conceding mating rights to the victor. The behaviour is most pronounced in saddleback subspecies, which are more aggressive and have longer necks.[74]
The prelude to mating can be very aggressive, as the male forcefully rams the female's shell with his own and nips her legs.[20] Mounting is an awkward process and the male must stretch and tense to maintain equilibrium in a slanting position. The concave underside of the male's shell helps him to balance when straddled over the female's shell, and brings his cloacal vent (which houses the penis) closer to the female's dilated cloaca. During mating, the male vocalises with hoarse bellows and grunts,[76] described as "rhythmic groans".[48] This is one of the few vocalisations the tortoise makes; other noises are made during aggressive encounters, when struggling to right themselves, and hissing as they withdraw into their shells due to the forceful expulsion of air.[83]
A tour guide holds up a tortoise egg and a small tortoise. The egg comfortably rests in the palm of a hand. It is spherical and the size of a billiard ball. It has a smooth white surface with a light layer of dirt on it. The tortoise is held by the other hand, above the egg. The width of the tortoise is only marginally wider than the egg.
A young tortoise and a tortoise egg
Egg-laying
Females then journey up to several kilometres in July to November to reach nesting areas of dry, sandy coast. Nest digging is a tiring and elaborate task which may take the female several hours a day over many days to complete.[48] It is carried out blindly using only the hind legs to dig a 30 cm (12 in) deep cylindrical hole, into which she lays up to sixteen spherical, hard-shelled eggs ranging from 82 to 157 grams (2.9 to 5.5 oz) in mass,[43] and the size of a billiard ball.[65] Some observations suggest that the average clutch size for domed populations (9.6 per clutch for porteri on Santa Cruz) is larger than that of saddlebacks (4.6 per clutch for duncanensis on Pinzón).[44] The female makes a muddy plug for the nest hole out of soil mixed with urine, seals the nest by pressing down firmly with her plastron, and leaves them to be incubated by the sun. Females may lay 1–4 clutches per season. Temperature plays a role in the sex of the hatchling, with lower temperature nests producing more males and higher temperature nests producing more females. This is related closely to incubation time, since clutches laid early will incubate during the cool season and have longer incubation periods (producing more males), while nests that are laid later incubate for a shorter period in the hot season (producing more females).[84]
Early life and maturation
Young animals emerge from the nest after four to eight months and may weigh only 50 grams (1.8 oz) and measure 6 centimetres (2.4 in).[48] When the young tortoises emerge from their shells, they must dig their way to the surface, which can take up several weeks, though their yolk sac can sustain them for up to seven months.[65] In particularly dry conditions, the hatchlings may die underground if they are encased by hardened soil, while flooding of the nest area can drown them. Subspecies are initially indistinguishable as they all have domed carapaces. The young stay in warmer lowland areas for their first 10–15 years,[43] encountering hazards such as falling into cracks, being crushed by falling rock, or excessive heat stress. The Galápagos Hawk was formerly the sole native predator of the tortoise hatchlings, as Darwin wrote: "The young tortoises, as soon as they are hatched, fall prey in great numbers to the buzzard".[67] The hawk is now much rarer, but introduced feral pigs, dogs, cats and black rats have become predators of eggs and young tortoises.[85] The adult tortoises have no natural predators apart from humans, as Darwin noted: "The old ones seem generally to die from accidents, as from falling down precipices. At least several of the inhabitants told me, they had never found one dead without some such apparent cause".[67]
Sex can be determined only when the tortoise is about 15 years old, and sexual maturity is reached at around 20–25 years in captivity, possibly 40 years in the wild (when they reach their full size). Life expectancy in the wild is thought to be over 100 years,[86][87] making it one of the longest lived species in the animal kingdom. Harriet was the oldest known Galápagos tortoise, having reached an estimated age of more than 170 years before her death in 2006 in Australia Zoo.[88] Chambers notes that Harriet was probably 169 years old in 2004. The individual died in 2006 (although media outlets claimed the greater age of 175 based on a less reliable timeline.[89]
[edit] Darwin's development of theory of evolution
Three quarter length portrait of Darwin aged about 30, with straight brown hair receding from his high forehead and long side-whiskers, smiling quietly, in wide lapelled jacket, waistcoat and high collar with cravat.
Charles Darwin as a young man, probably subsequent to the Galápagos visit
Charles Darwin visited the Galápagos for five weeks on the second voyage of HMS Beagle in 1835 and saw Galápagos tortoises on San Cristobal (Chatham) and Santiago (James) Islands.[90] They appeared several times in his writings and journals, and played a role in the development of the theory of evolution.
Darwin wrote in his account of the voyage:
"I have not as yet noticed by far the most remarkable feature in the natural history of this archipelago; it is, that the different islands to a considerable extent are inhabited by a different set of beings. My attention was first called to this fact by the Vice-Governor, Mr. Lawson, declaring that the tortoises differed from the different islands, and that he could with certainty tell from which island any one was brought ... The inhabitants, as I have said, state that they can distinguish the tortoises from the different islands; and that they differ not only in size, but in other characters. Captain Porter has described* those from Charles and from the nearest island to it, namely, Hood Island, as having their shells in front thick and turned up like a Spanish saddle, while the tortoises from James Island are rounder, blacker, and have a better taste when cooked."[91]
The significance of the differences in tortoises between islands did not strike him as important until it was too late, as he continued,
"I did not for some time pay sufficient attention to this statement, and I had already partially mingled together the collections from two of the islands. I never dreamed that islands, about fifty or sixty miles apart, and most of them in sight of each other, formed of precisely the same rocks, placed under a quite similar climate, rising to a nearly equal height, would have been differently tenanted".[91]
Although the Beagle departed from the Galápagos with over 30 adult tortoises on deck, these were not for scientific study but a source of fresh meat for their Pacific crossing. Their shells and bones were thrown overboard, leaving no remains with which to test any hypotheses.[92] It has been suggested[93] that this oversight was made because Darwin only reported seeing tortoises on San Cristóbal[94] (chathamensis) and Santiago[95] (darwini), both of which have an intermediate type of shell shape and are not particularly morphologically distinct from each other. Though he did visit Floreana, the nigra subspecies found there was already nearly extinct and he was unlikely to have seen any mature animals.[41]
Line drawing of the HMS Beagle by F. G. King, a colleague of Darwin's. Galápagos tortoises were stacked in the lower hold.
Darwin did however have four live juvenile specimens to compare from different islands. These were pet tortoises taken by himself (from San Salvador), his captain FitzRoy (two from Española) and his servant Syms Covington (from Floreana).[96] Unfortunately they could not help to determine whether each island had its own variety because the specimens were not mature enough to exhibit morphological differences.[97] Although the British Museum had a few specimens, their provenance within the Galápagos was unknown.[98] However, conversations with the naturalist Gabriel Bibron, who had seen the mature tortoises of the Paris Natural History Museum confirmed to Darwin that there were distinct varieties.[99]
Darwin later compared the different tortoise forms with those of mockingbirds, in the first[100] tentative statement linking his observations from the Galapagos with the possibility of species transmuting:
"When I recollect the fact that [from] the form of the body, shape of scales and general size, the Spaniards can at once pronounce from which island any tortoise may have been brought; when I see these islands in sight of each other and possessed of but a scanty stock of animals, tenanted by these birds, but slightly differing in structure and filling the same place in nature; I must suspect they are only varieties ... If there is the slightest foundation for these remarks, the zoology of archipelagos will be well worth examining; for such facts would undermine the stability of species."[101]
His views on the mutability of species were restated in his notebooks: "animals on separate islands ought to become different if kept long enough apart with slightly differing circumstances. – Now Galapagos Tortoises, Mocking birds, Falkland Fox, Chiloe fox, – Inglish and Irish Hare."[102] These observations served as counterexamples to the prevailing contemporary view that species were individually created.
Darwin also found these "antediluvian animals"[94] to be a source of diversion: "I frequently got on their backs, and then giving a few raps on the hinder part of their shells, they would rise up and walk away;—but I found it very difficult to keep my balance".[67]
[edit] Conservation
Several waves of human exploitation of the tortoises as a food source caused a decline in the total wild population from around 250,000[87] when first discovered in the 16th century to a low of 3,060 individuals in a 1974 census. Modern conservation efforts have subsequently brought tortoise numbers up to 19,317 (estimate for 1995–2009).[103]
The subspecies C. n. nigra became extinct by human exploitation in the 19th century. Another subspecies, C. n. abingdoni, is now extinct in the wild and represented in captivity by a single male specimen, Lonesome George. It is the only known living specimen of the Pinta Island tortoise and the world's "rarest living creature".[104] All the other surviving subspecies are listed by the IUCN as at least "Vulnerable" in conservation status, if not worse.
[edit] Historical exploitation
An estimated 200,000 animals were taken before the 20th century.[43] The relatively immobile and defenceless tortoises were collected and stored live on board ships, where they could survive for at least a year without food or water (some anecdotal reports suggest individuals surviving two years[105]), providing valuable fresh meat, while their diluted urine and water stored in their neck bags could be used as drinking water. The 17th century British pirate, explorer and naturalist William Dampier wrote that "They are so extraordinarily large and fat, and so sweet, that no pullet eats more pleasantly,"[106] while Captain James Colnett of the British Navy wrote of "the land tortoise which in whatever way it was dressed, was considered by all of us as the most delicious food we had ever tasted."[107] US Navy captain David Porter declared that, "after once tasting the Gallipagos tortoises, every other animal food fell off greatly in our estimation ... The meat of this animal is the easiest of digestion, and a quantity of it, exceeding that of any other food, can be eaten without experiencing the slightest of inconvenience."[80] Darwin was less enthusiastic about tortoise meat, writing "the breast-plate roasted (as the Gauchos do "carne con cuero"), with the flesh on it, is very good; and the young tortoises make excellent soup; but otherwise the meat to my taste is indifferent."[108]
In the 17th century, pirates started to use the Galápagos Islands as a base for resupply, restocking on food, water and repairing vessels before attacking Spanish colonies on the South American mainland. However, the Galápagos tortoises did not struggle for survival at this point because the islands were distant to busy shipping routes and harboured few valuable natural resources. As such they remained unclaimed by any nation, uninhabited and uncharted. In comparison, the tortoises of the islands in the Indian Ocean were already facing extinction by the late 17th century.[109]
Between the 1790s and the 1860s, whaling ships and fur-sealers systematically collected tortoises in far greater numbers than the buccaneers preceding them.[110] They were used for food and many more were killed for high grade "turtle oil" from the late 19th century onward for lucrative sale to continental Ecuador.[111] A total of over 13,000 tortoises is recorded in the logs of whaling ships between 1831 and 1868, and an estimated 100,000 were taken before 1830.[105] Since it was easiest to collect tortoises around coastal zones, females were most vulnerable to depletion during the nesting season. The collection by whalers came to a halt eventually through a combination of the scarcity of tortoises that they had created and the competition from crude oil as a cheaper energy source.[112]
Population decline accelerated with the early settlement of the islands in the early 19th century leading to unregulated hunting for meat, habitat clearance for agriculture and the introduction of alien mammal species.[44] Feral pigs, dogs, cats and black rats have become predators of eggs and young tortoises, whilst goats, donkeys and cattle compete for grazing and trample nest sites. The extinction of the Floreana subspecies in the mid-19th century has been attributed to the combined pressures of hunting for the penal colony on the relatively small island, the conversion of the grazing highlands into land for farming and fruit plantations, and the introduction of feral mammals.[113]
Scientific collection expeditions took 661 tortoises between 1888 and 1930, and more than 120 tortoises have been taken by poachers since 1990. Threats continue today with the rapid expansion of the tourist industry and increasing size of human settlements on the islands.[114]
[edit] Modern conservation
The remaining subspecies of tortoise range in IUCN classification from extinct in the wild to vulnerable. Slow growth rate, late sexual maturity and island endemism make the tortoises particularly prone to extinction without the efforts of conservationists.[63] The Galápagos giant tortoise has become a flagship species for conservation efforts throughout the Galápagos.
Two Galápagos tortoises occupy the foreground, apparently unconcerned by the presence of several tourists a few feet behind them. The tourists wear assorted sunglasses and sunhats, and most are taking pictures of the tortoises with their digital cameras.
Tourists see tortoises at the Charles Darwin Research station.
Legal protection
The Galápagos giant tortoise is now strictly protected and is listed on Appendix I of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora.[37] The listing requires that trade in the taxon and its products are subject to strict regulation by ratifying states, and international trade for primarily commercial purposes is prohibited. In 1936 the Ecuadorian government listed the giant tortoise as a protected species. In 1959, it declared all uninhabited areas in the Galápagos to be a National Park[115] and established the Charles Darwin Foundation. In 1970, capturing or removing many species from the islands (including tortoises and their eggs) was banned.[116] To halt trade in the tortoises altogether, it became illegal to export the tortoises from Ecuador, captive or wild, continental or insular in provenance. The banning of their exportation resulted in automatic prohibition of importation to the United States under Public Law 91-135 (1969).[117] A 1971 Ecuadorian decree made it illegal to damage, remove, alter or disturb any organism, rock or other natural object in the National Park.[118]
Captive breeding
Breeding and releasing programs began in 1965 and have successfully brought seven of the eight endangered subspecies up to less perilous population levels. Young tortoises are raised at several breeding centres across the islands to improve their survival during their vulnerable early development. Eggs are collected from threatened nesting sites, and the hatched young are given a head start by being kept in captivity for four to five years to reach a size with a much better chance of survival to adulthood before release onto their native ranges.[85][103]
The most significant population recovery was that of the Española Tortoise (hoodensis), which was saved from near-certain extinction. The population had been depleted to 3 males and 12 females that had been so widely dispersed that no mating in the wild had occurred.[119] They were brought to the Charles Darwin Research Station in 1971 for a captive breeding program.[120] In the following 33 years, these 15 tortoises gave rise to over 1,200 tortoises released onto their home island, which themselves have begun to reproduce naturally.[121][122]
Island restoration
The Galápagos National Park Service systematically culls feral predators and competitors. Goat eradication on islands including Pinta was achieved by the technique of using "Judas" goats with electronic collars to locate the herds. Marksmen shot all the goats except the Judas, then returned weeks later to find the "Judas" and shoot the herd to which it had relocated, repeating until only the "Judas" remained, which was then killed.[123] Other measures have included dog eradication from San Cristóbal, and fencing off nests to protect them from feral pigs.[85]
Efforts are now underway to repopulate islands formerly inhabited by tortoises in order to restore their ecosystems (island restoration) to their pre-human condition. The tortoises are a keystone species, acting as ecosystem engineers[123] which help in plant seed dispersal, trampling down brush and thinning the understory of vegetation (allowing light to penetrate and germination to occur). Birds such as flycatchers perch on and fly around tortoises in order to hunt the insects they displace from the brush.[65] In May 2010, 39 sterilised tortoises of hybrid origin were introduced to Pinta Island, the first tortoises there since the evacuation of Lonesome George 38 years ago in 1972.[124] Sterile tortoises were released so that the problem of interbreeding between subspecies would be avoided if any fertile tortoises were to be released in the future. It is hoped that with the recent identification of a hybrid abingdoni tortoise, the approximate genetic constitution of the original inhabitants of Pinta may eventually be restored with the identification and relocation of appropriate specimens to this island.[61] This approach may be used to "re-tortoise" Floreana in the future, since captive individuals have been found to be descended from the extinct original stock.[58]
Chichen Itza
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Pre-Hispanic City of Chichen-Itza*
UNESCO World Heritage Site
Chichen-Itza-Castillo-Seen-From-East.JPG
State Party Mexico
Type Cultural
Criteria i, ii, iii
Reference 483
Region** Latin America and the Caribbean
Inscription history
Inscription 1988 (12th Session)
* Name as inscribed on World Heritage List.
** Region as classified by UNESCO.
Map of central Chichen Itza
Chichen Itza (play /tʃiːˈtʃɛn iːˈtsɑː/;[1] from Yucatec Maya: Chi'ch'èen Ìitsha',[2] "at the mouth of the well of the Itza") is a large pre-Columbian archaeological site built by the Maya civilization located in the northern center of the Yucatán Peninsula, in the Municipality of Tinúm, Yucatán state, present-day Mexico.
Chichen Itza was a major focal point in the northern Maya lowlands from the Late Classic through the Terminal Classic and into the early portion of the Early Postclassic period. The site exhibits a multitude of architectural styles, from what is called “In the Mexican Origin” and reminiscent of styles seen in central Mexico to the Puuc style found among the Puuc Maya of the northern lowlands. The presence of central Mexican styles was once thought to have been representative of direct migration or even conquest from central Mexico, but most contemporary interpretations view the presence of these non-Maya styles more as the result of cultural diffusion.
The ruins of Chichen Itza are federal property, and the site’s stewardship is maintained by Mexico’s Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia (National Institute of Anthropology and History, INAH). The land under the monuments had been privately-owned until March 29, 2010, when it was purchased by the state of Yucatán.[3]
Contents
[hide]
* 1 Name and orthography
* 2 History
o 2.1 Ascendancy
+ 2.1.1 Political organization
+ 2.1.2 Economy
o 2.2 Decline
o 2.3 Spanish arrival
* 3 Site description
o 3.1 Great North Platform
+ 3.1.1 El Castillo
+ 3.1.2 Great Ball Court
+ 3.1.3 Tzompantli
+ 3.1.4 Platform of the Eagles and the Jaguars
+ 3.1.5 Platform of Venus
+ 3.1.6 Sacbe Number One
+ 3.1.7 Cenote Sagrado
+ 3.1.8 Temple of the Tables
+ 3.1.9 Temple of the Warriors
+ 3.1.10 Group of a Thousand Columns
+ 3.1.11 Steam Bath
+ 3.1.12 El Mercado
o 3.2 Ossario Group
+ 3.2.1 Ossario
+ 3.2.2 Temple of Xtoloc
+ 3.2.3 House of the Metates and House of the Mestizas
o 3.3 The Casa Colorada Group
+ 3.3.1 Casa Colorada
+ 3.3.2 The House of the Deer
o 3.4 Central Group
+ 3.4.1 Las Monjas
+ 3.4.2 El Caracol
+ 3.4.3 Akab Dzib
o 3.5 Old Chichen
+ 3.5.1 Other structures
* 4 Caves of Balankanche
* 5 Archaeological investigations
* 6 Tourism
* 7 Photo gallery
* 8 See also
* 9 Notes
* 10 References
* 11 Further reading
* 12 External links
[edit] Name and orthography
Feathered Serpent, bottom of "El Castillo" staircase
The Maya name "Chich'en Itza" means "At the mouth of the well of the Itza." This derives from chi', meaning "mouth" or "edge", and ch'e'en, meaning "well." Itzá is the name of an ethnic-lineage group that gained political and economic dominance of the northern peninsula. The name is believed to derive from the Maya itz, meaning "magic," and (h)á, meaning "water." Itzá in Spanish is often translated as "Brujas del Agua (Witches of Water)" but a more precise translation would be Magicians of Water.[citation needed]
The name is often represented as Chichén Itzá in Spanish and when translated into other languages from Spanish to show that both parts of the name are stressed on their final syllables. Other references prefer to employ a more rigorous orthography in which the word is written according to the Maya language, using Chich'en Itzá (pronounced IPA: [t?it?'en itsá?]). This form preserves the phonemic distinction between ch' and ch, since the base word ch'e'en (which, however, does have a neutral tone vowel "e" in Maya and is not accented or stressed in Maya) begins with a glottalized affricate. The word "Itzá'" has a high rise final "a" that is followed by a glottal stop (indicated by the apostrophe).
There is evidence in the Chilam Balam books that there was another, earlier name for this city prior to the arrival of the Itza hegemony in northern Yucatán. This name is difficult to define because of the absence of a single standard of orthography, but it is represented variously as Uuc Yabnal,[4] Uuc Hab Nal,[5] or Uc Abnal.[6] While most sources agree the first word means seven, there is considerable debate as to the correct translation of the rest. Among the translations suggested are “Seven Bushes,” “Seven Great Houses,” or “Seven Lines of Abnal.”
[edit] History
Cenote Sagrado
Northern Yucatán is arid, and the rivers in the interior all run underground. There are two large, natural sink holes, called cenotes, that could have provided plentiful water year round at Chichen, making it attractive for settlement. Of the two cenotes, the "Cenote Sagrado" or Sacred Cenote (also variously known as the Sacred Well or Well of Sacrifice), is the most famous. According to post-Conquest sources (Maya and Spanish), pre-Columbian Maya sacrificed objects and human beings into the cenote as a form of worship to the Maya rain god Chaac. Edward Herbert Thompson dredged the Cenote Sagrado from 1904 to 1910, and recovered artifacts of gold, jade, pottery, and incense, as well as human remains.[7] A recent study of human remains taken from the Cenote Sagrado found that they had wounds consistent with human sacrifice.[8]
Kukulcan's Jaguar Throne, interior temple of "El Castillo"
[edit] Ascendancy
Chichen Itza rose to regional prominence towards the end of the Early Classic period (roughly 600 AD). It was, however, towards the end of the Late Classic and into the early part of the Terminal Classic that the site became a major regional capital, centralizing and dominating political, sociocultural, economic, and ideological life in the northern Maya lowlands. The ascension of Chichen Itza roughly correlates with the decline and fragmentation of the major centers of the southern Maya lowlands.
Some ethnohistoric sources claim that in about 987 a Toltec king named Topiltzin Ce Acatl Quetzalcoatl arrived here with an army from central Mexico, and (with local Maya allies) made Chichen Itza his capital, and a second Tula. The art and architecture from this period shows an interesting mix of Maya and Toltec styles. However, the recent re-dating of Chichen Itza's decline (see below) indicates that Chichen Itza is largely a Late/Terminal Classic site, while Tula remains an Early Postclassic site (thus reversing the direction of possible influence).
[edit] Political organization
Columns in the Temple of a Thousand Warriors
Several archaeologists in late 1980s suggested that unlike previous Maya polities of the Early Classic, Chichen Itza may not have been governed by an individual ruler or a single dynastic lineage. Instead, the city’s political organization could have been structured by a "multepal" system, which is characterized as rulership through council composed of members of elite ruling lineages.[9] This theory was popular in the 1990s, but in recent years, the research that supported the concept of the "multepal" system has been called into question, if not discredited. The current belief trend in Maya scholarship is toward the more traditional model of the Maya kingdoms of the Classic southern lowlands.[10]
[edit] Economy
Chichen Itza was a major economic power in the northern Maya lowlands during its apogee. Participating in the water-borne circum-peninsular trade route through its port site of Isla Cerritos, Chichen Itza was able to obtain locally unavailable resources from distant areas such as central Mexico (obsidian) and southern Central America (gold).
[edit] Decline
According to Maya chronicles (e.g., the Book of Chilam Balam of Chumayel), Hunac Ceel, ruler of Mayapan, conquered Chichen Itza in the 13th century. Hunac Ceel supposedly prophesied his own rise to power. According to custom at the time, individuals thrown into the Cenote Sagrado were believed to have the power of prophecy if they survived. During one such ceremony, the chronicles state, there were no survivors, so Hunac Ceel leaped into the Cenote Sagrado, and when removed, prophesied his own ascension.
While there is some archaeological evidence that indicates Chichén Itzá was at one time looted and sacked,[11] there appears to be greater evidence that it could not have been by Mayapan, at least not when Chichén Itzá was an active urban center. Archaeological data now indicates that Chichen Itza fell by around AD 1000, some two centuries before the rise of Mayapan.[12] Ongoing research at the site of Mayapan may help resolve this chronological conundrum.
While Chichén Itzá “collapsed” (meaning elite activities ceased and the site rapidly depopulated) it does not appear to have been completely abandoned. According to post-Conquest sources, both Spanish and Maya, the Cenote Sagrado remained a place of pilgrimage.
[edit] Spanish arrival
See also: Spanish conquest of Yucatán
In 1526 Spanish Conquistador Francisco de Montejo (a veteran of the Grijalva and Cortés expeditions) successfully petitioned the King of Spain for a charter to conquer Yucatán. His first campaign in 1527, which covered much of the Yucatán peninsula, decimated his forces but ended with the establishment of a small fort at Xaman Ha', south of what is today Cancún. Montejo returned to Yucatán in 1531 with reinforcements and established his main base at Campeche on the west coast.[13] He sent his son, Francisco Montejo The Younger, in late 1532 to conquer the interior of the Yucatán Peninsula from the north. The objective from the beginning was to go to Chichén Itzá and establish a capital.[14]
Montejo the Younger eventually arrived at Chichen Itza, which he renamed Ciudad Real. At first he encountered no resistance, and set about dividing the lands around the city and awarding them to his soldiers. The Maya became more hostile over time, and eventually they laid siege to the Spanish, cutting off their supply line to the coast, and forcing them to barricade themselves among the ruins of ancient city. Months passed, but no reinforcements arrived. Montejo the Younger attempted an all out assault against the Maya and lost 150 of his remaining forces. He was forced to abandon Chichén Itzá in 1534 under cover of darkness. By 1535, all Spanish had been driven from the Yucatán Peninsula.[15]
Montejo eventually returned to Yucatán and, by recruiting Maya from Campeche and Champoton, built a large Indio-Spanish army and conquered the peninsula.[16] The Spanish crown later issued a land grant that included Chichen Itza and by 1588 it was a working cattle ranch.[17]
[edit] Site description
site map of Chichen Itza.
The site[18] contains many fine stone buildings in various states of preservation, and many have been restored. The buildings are connected by a dense network of formerly paved roads, called sacbeob.[19] Archaeologists have found almost 100 sacbeob criss-crossing the site, and extending in all directions from the city.[20]
The buildings of Chichén Itza are grouped in a series of architectonic sets, and each set was at one time separated from the other by a series of low walls. The three best known of these complexes are the Great North Platform, which includes the monuments of El Castillo, Temple of Warriors and the Great Ball Court; The Ossario Group, which includes the pyramid of the same name as well as the Temple of Xtoloc; and the Central Group, which includes the Caracol, Las Monjas, and Akab Dzib.
South of Las Monjas, in an area known as Chichén Viejo (Old Chichén) and only open to archaeologists, are several other complexes, such as the Group of the Initial Series, Group of the Lintels, and Group of the Old Castle.
[edit] Great North Platform
[edit] El Castillo
Main article: El Castillo, Chichen Itza
High-resolution photo showing the restored sides of El Castillo
The serpent effect demonstrated with artificial light during night-time.
Dominating the center of Chichén is the Temple of Kukulkan (the Maya name for Quetzalcoatl), often referred to as "El Castillo" (the castle). This step pyramid has a ground plan of square terraces with stairways up each of the four sides to the temple on top. On the Spring and Autumn equinox, at the rising and setting of the sun, the corner of the structure casts a shadow in the shape of a plumed serpent – Kukulcan, or Quetzalcoatl – along the west side of the north staircase. On these two annual occasions, the shadows from the corner tiers slither down the northern side of the pyramid with the sun's movement to the serpent's head at the base.
East side of El Castillo
Mesoamerican cultures periodically built larger pyramids atop older ones, and this is one such example. In the mid 1930s, the Mexican government sponsored an excavation of El Castillo. After several false starts, they discovered a staircase under the north side of the pyramid. By digging from the top, they found another temple buried below the current one. Inside the temple chamber was a Chac Mool statue and a throne in the shape of Jaguar, painted red and with spots made of inlaid jade.
The Mexican government excavated a tunnel from the base of the north staircase, up the earlier pyramid’s stairway to the hidden temple, and opened it to tourists. In 2006, INAH closed the throne room to the public.
[edit] Great Ball Court
Archaeologists have identified several courts for playing the Mesoamerican ballgame in Chichén, but the Great Ball Court about 150 metres (490 ft) to the north-west of the Castillo is by far the most impressive. It is the largest ball court in ancient Mesoamerica. It measures 166 by 68 metres (545 × 223 ft). The imposing walls are 12 metres (39 ft) high, and in the center, high up on each of the long walls, are rings carved with intertwining serpents.[21]
At the base of the high interior walls are slanted benches with sculpted panels of teams of ball players. In one panel, one of the players has been decapitated and from the wound emits seven streams of blood; six become wriggling serpents and the center becomes a winding plant.
At one end of the Great Ball Court is the North Temple, popularly called the Temple of the Bearded Man. This small masonry building has detailed bas relief carving on the inner walls, including a center figure that has carving under his chin that resembles facial hair.[22] At the south end is another, much bigger temple, but in ruins.
Built into the east wall are the Temples of the Jaguar. The Upper Temple of the Jaguar overlooks the ball court and has an entrance guarded by two, large columns carved in the familiar feathered serpent motif. Inside there is a large mural, much destroyed, which depicts a battle scene.
In the entrance to the Lower Temple of the Jaguar, which opens behind the ball court, is another Jaguar throne, similar to the one in the inner temple of El Castillo, except that it is well worn and missing paint or other decoration. The outer columns and the walls inside the temple are covered with elaborate bas-relief carvings.
Great Ball Court
[edit] Tzompantli
Chichen Itza tzompantli
Of all the monuments, the Tzompantli is the closest to what one would find in the Mexican Plateau. This monument, a low, flat platform, is surrounded with carved depictions of human skulls.
[edit] Platform of the Eagles and the Jaguars
Next to El Castillo are a series of platforms. The Platform of the Eagles and the Jaguars is built in a combination Maya and Toltec styles. Each side has a staircase to the top. Carved into the sides are panels depicting Harpy Eagles[23] and Jaguars consuming what appear to be human hearts.
[edit] Platform of Venus
This platform is dedicated to the planet Venus. In its interior archaeologists discovered a collection of large cones carved out of stone, the purpose of which is unknown. This platform is placed between El Castillo and the Cenote Sagrado.
[edit] Sacbe Number One
This sacbe, which leads to the Cenote Sagrado, is the largest and most elaborate at Chichen Itza. This “white road” is 270 metres (890 ft) long with an average width of 9 metres (30 ft). It begins at a low wall a few metres from the Platform of Venus. According to archaeologists there once was an extensive building with columns at the beginning of the road.
[edit] Cenote Sagrado
Main article: Sacred Cenote
The Yucatán Peninsula is a limestone plain, with no rivers or streams. The region is pockmarked with natural sinkholes, called cenotes, which expose the water table to the surface. One of the most impressive breats is the Cenote Sagrado, which is 60 metres (200 ft) in diameter, and sheer cliffs that drop to the water table some 27 metres (89 ft) below.
The Cenote Sagrado was a place of pilgrimage for ancient Maya people who, according to ethnohistoric sources, would conduct sacrifices during times of drought. Archaeological investigations support this as thousands of objects have been removed from the bottom of the cenote, including material such as gold, jade, obsidian, shell, wood, cloth, as well as skeletons of children and men.
[edit] Temple of the Tables
To the east of El Castillo is a series of buildings, the northernmost is the Temple of the Tables. Its name comes from a series of altars at the top of the structure that are supported by small carved figures of men with upraised arms, called “atlantes.”
[edit] Temple of the Warriors
Templo de los Guerreros (Temple of the Warriors)
Detail of Temple of the Warriors showing Chac Mool
The Temple of the Warriors complex consists of a large stepped pyramid fronted and flanked by rows of carved columns depicting warriors. This complex is analogous to Temple B at the Toltec capital of Tula, and indicates some form of cultural contact between the two regions. The one at Chichen Itza, however, was constructed on a larger scale. At the top of the stairway on the pyramid’s summit (and leading towards the entrance of the pyramid’s temple) is a Chac Mool. This temple encases or entombs a former structure called The Temple of the Chac Mool. The archeological expedition and restoration of this building was done by the Carnegie Institute of Washington from 1925–1928. A key member of this restoration was Earl H. Morris who published the work from this expedition in two volumes entitled Temple of the Warriors.
[edit] Group of a Thousand Columns
Along the south wall of the Temple of Warriors are a series of what are today exposed columns, although when the city was inhabited these would have supported an extensive roof system. The columns are in three distinct sections: an east group, that extends the lines of the front of the Temple of Warriors; a north group, which runs along the south wall of the Temple of Warriors and contains pillars with carvings of soldiers in bas-relief; and a northeast group, which was apparently formed a small temple at the southeast corner of the Temple of Warriors, which contains a rectangular decorated with carvings of people or gods, as well as animals and serpents. The northeast column temple also covers a small marvel of engineering, a channel that funnels all the rainwater from the complex some 40 metres (130 ft) away to a rejollada, a former cenote.
To the south of the Group of a Thousand Columns is a group of three, smaller, interconnected buildings. The Temple of the Carved Columns is a small elegant building that consists of a front gallery with an inner corridor that leads to an altar with a Chac Mool. There are also numerous columns with rich, bas-relief carvings of some 40 personages. The Temple of the Small Tables which has an exterior motif of x’s and o’s. And the Palace of Ahau Balam Kauil (also known as Thompson’s Temple), a small building with two levels that has friezes depicting Jaguars (balam in Maya) as well as glyphs of the Maya god Kahuil.
[edit] Steam Bath
This unique building has three parts: a waiting gallery, a water bath, and a steam chamber that operated by means of heated stones.
[edit] El Mercado
This square structure anchors the southern end of the Temple of Warriors complex. It is so named for the shelf of stone that surrounds a large gallery and patio that early explorers theorized was used to display wares as in a marketplace. Today, archaeologists believe that its purpose was more ceremonial than commerce.
[edit] Ossario Group
South of the North Group is a smaller platform that has many important structures, several of which appear to be oriented toward the second largest cenote at Chichen Itza, Xtoloc.
[edit] Ossario
Ossario.
Like El Castillo, this step-pyramid temple dominates the platform, only on a smaller scale. Like its larger neighbor, it has four sides with staircases on each side. There is a temple on top, but unlike El Castillo, at the center is an opening into the pyramid which leads to a natural cave 12 metres (39 ft) below. Edward H. Thompson excavated this cave in the late 19th century, and because he found several skeletons and artifacts such as jade beads, he named the structure The High Priests' Temple. Archaeologists today believe neither that the structure was a tomb nor that the personages buried in it were priests.
[edit] Temple of Xtoloc
Outside the Ossario Platform is this recently restored temple which overlooks the other large cenote at Chichen Itza, named after the Maya word for iguana, "Xtoloc." The temple contains a series of pilasters carved with images of people, as well as representations of plants, birds and mythological scenes.
Between the Xtoloc temple and the Ossario are several aligned structures: Platform of Venus (which is similar in design to the structure of the same name next to El Castillo), Platform of the Tombs, and a small, round structure that is unnamed. These three structures were constructed in a row extending from the Ossario. Beyond them the Ossario platform terminates in a wall, which contains an opening to a sacbe that runs several hundred feet to the Xtoloc temple.
[edit] House of the Metates and House of the Mestizas
South of the Ossario, at the boundary of the platform, there are two small buildings that archaeologists believe were residences for important personages.
[edit] The Casa Colorada Group
South of the Ossario Group is another small platform that has several structures that are among the oldest in the Chichen Itza archaeological zone.
[edit] Casa Colorada
The Casa Colorada, which is Spanish for Red House, is one of the best preserved buildings at Chichen Itza. It also has a Maya name, Chichanchob, which according to INAH may mean "small holes." In one chamber there are extensive carved hieroglyphs that mention rulers of Chichen Itza and possibly of the nearby city of Ek Balam, and contain a Maya date inscribed which correlates to 869 a.d.e., one of the oldest such dates found in all of Chichen Itza.
In 2009, INAH restored a small ball court that adjoined the back wall of the Casa Colorada.[24]
[edit] The House of the Deer
While the Casa Colorada is in a good state of preservation, other buildings in the group, with one exception, are decrepit mounds. One building is half standing, named Casa del Venado (House of the Deer). The origin of the name is unknown, as there are no representations of deer or other animals on the building.
[edit] Central Group
[edit] Las Monjas
"La Iglesia" in Las Monjas complex of buildings.
One of the more notable structures at Chichen Itza is a complex of Terminal Classic buildings constructed in the Puuc architectural style. The Spanish nicknamed this complex Las Monjas ("The Nuns" or "The Nunnery") but was actually a governmental palace. Just to the east is a small temple (nicknamed La Iglesia, "The Church") decorated with elaborate masks of the rain god Chaac.
[edit] El Caracol
Main article: El Caracol, Chichen Itza
"El Caracol" observatory temple.
To the north of Las Monjas is a cockeyed, round building on a large square platform. It's nicknamed El Caracol ("the snail") because of the stone spiral staircase inside. The structure with its unusual placement on the platform and its round shape (the others are rectangular, in keeping with Maya practice), is theorized to have been a proto-observatory with doors and windows aligned to astronomical events, specifically around the path of Venus as it traverses the heavens.[25]
[edit] Akab Dzib
Main article: Akab Dzib
Located to the east of the Caracol, Akab Dzib means, in Maya, "Dark (in the "Mysterious" sense) Writing." An earlier name of the building, according to a translation of glyphs in the Casa Colorada, is Wa(k)wak Puh Ak Na, "the flat house with the excessive number of chambers,” and it was the home of the administrator of Chichén Itzá, kokom Yahawal Cho' K’ak’.[26] INAH completed a restoration of the building in 2007. It is relatively short, only 6 metres (20 ft) high, and is 50 metres (160 ft) in length and 15 metres (49 ft) wide. The long, western-facing facade has seven doorways. The eastern facade has only four doorways, broken by a large staircase that leads to the roof. This apparently was the front of the structure, and looks out over what is today a steep, but dry, cenote. The southern end of the building has one entrance. The door opens into a small chamber and on the opposite wall is another doorway, above which on the lintel are intricately carved glyphs—the “mysterious” or “obscure” writing that gives the building its name today. Under the lintel in the door jamb is another carved panel of a seated figure surrounded by more glyphs. Inside one of the chambers, near the ceiling, is a painted hand print.
[edit] Old Chichen
"Old Chichen" is the nickname for a group of structures to the south of the central site. It includes the Initial Series Group, the Phallic Temple, the Platform of the Great Turtle, the Temple of the Owls, and the Temple of the Monkeys.
[edit] Other structures
Chichen Itza also has a variety of other structures densely packed in the ceremonial center of about 5 square kilometres (1.9 sq mi) and several outlying subsidiary sites.
[edit] Caves of Balankanche
Composite Laser scan image of Chichen Itza's Cave of Balankanche, showing how the shape of its great limestone column is strongly evocative of the World Tree in Maya mythological belief systems.
Photo of the great limestone column in the Cave of Balankanche, surrounded by Tlaloc-themed incense burners
Approximately 4 km (2.5 mi) west of the Chichen Itza archaeological zone are a network of sacred caves known as Balankanche (Spanish: Gruta de Balankanche), Balamka'anche' in Modern Maya). In the caves, a large selection of ancient pottery and idols may be seen still in the positions where they were left in pre-Columbian times.
The location of the cave has been well known in modern times. Edward Thompson and Alfred Tozzer visited it in 1905. A.S. Pearse and a team of biologists explored the cave in 1932 and 1936. E. Wyllys Andrews IV also explored the cave in the 1930s. Edwin Shook and R.E. Smith explored the cave on behalf of the Carnegie Institution in 1954, and dug several trenches to recover potsherds and other artifacts. Shook determined that the cave had been inhabited over a long period, at least from the Preclassic to the post-conquest era.[27]
On 15 September 1959, José Humberto Gómez, a local guide, discovered a false wall in the cave. Behind it he found an extended network of caves with significant quantities of undisturbed archaeological remains, including pottery and stone-carved censers, stone implements and jewelry. INAH converted the cave into an underground museum, and the objects after being catalogued were returned to their original place so visitors can see them in situ.[28]
[edit] Archaeological investigations
Chichen Itza entered the popular imagination in 1843 with the book Incidents of Travel in Yucatan by John Lloyd Stephens (with illustrations by Frederick Catherwood). The book recounted Stephens’ visit to Yucatán and his tour of Maya cities, including Chichén Itzá. The book prompted other explorations of the city. In 1860, Desire Charnay surveyed Chichén Itzá and took numerous photographs that he published in Cités et ruines américaines (1863).
In 1875, Augustus Le Plongeon and his wife Alice Dixon Le Plongeon visited Chichén, and excavated a statue of a figure on its back, knees drawn up, upper torso raised on its elbows with a plate on its stomach. Augustus Le Plongeon called it “Chaacmol” (later renamed “Chac Mool,” which has been the term to describe all types of this statuary found in Mesoamerica). Teobert Maler and Alfred Maudslay explored Chichén in the 1880s and both spent several weeks at the site and took extensive photographs. Maudslay published the first long-form description of Chichen Itza in his book, Biologia Centrali-Americana.
In 1894 the United States Consul to Yucatán, Edward H. Thompson purchased the Hacienda Chichén, which included the ruins of Chichen Itza. For 30 years, Thompson explored the ancient city. His discoveries included the earliest dated carving upon a lintel in the Temple of the Initial Series and the excavation of several graves in the Ossario (High Priest’s Temple). Thompson is most famous for dredging the Cenote Sagrado (Sacred Cenote) from 1904 to 1910, where he recovered artifacts of gold, copper and carved jade, as well as the first-ever examples of what were believed to be pre-Columbian Maya cloth and wooden weapons. Thompson shipped the bulk of the artifacts to the Peabody Museum at Harvard University.
In 1913, archaeologist Sylvanus G. Morley persuaded the Carnegie Institution to fund an extensive archaeological project at Chichen Itza, which included mapping the ruins and restoring several of the monuments. The Mexican Revolution and the following government instability prevented the Carnegie from beginning work until 1924. Over the course of 10 years, the Carnegie researchers excavated and restored the Temple of Warriors and the Caracol. At the same time, the Mexican government excavated and restored El Castillo and the Great Ball Court.
Excavations next to El Castillo began in 2009
In 1926, the Mexican government charged Edward Thompson with theft, claiming he stole the artifacts from the Cenote Sagrado and smuggled them out of the country. The government seized the Hacienda Chichén. Thompson, who was in the United States at the time, never returned to Yucatán. He wrote about his research and investigations of the Maya culture in a book People of the Serpent published in 1932. He died in New Jersey in 1935. In 1944 the Mexican Supreme Court ruled that Thompson had broken no laws and returned Chichen Itza to his heirs. The Thompsons sold the hacienda to tourism pioneer Fernando Barbachano Peon.[29]
There have been two later expeditions to recover artifacts from the Cenote Sagrado, in 1961 and 1967. The first was sponsored by the National Geographic, and the second by private interests. Both projects were supervised by Mexico's National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH). INAH has conducted an ongoing effort to excavate and restore other monuments in the archaeological zone, including the Ossario, Akab D’zib, and several buildings in Chichén Viejo (Old Chichen).
In 2009, to investigate construction that predated El Castillo, archaeologists began excavations adjacent to El Castillo.
[edit] Tourism
ChichenItzaWS.ogg
Play video
Video tour of the main sights of Chichen Itza
Tourism has been a factor at Chichen Itza for more than a century. John Lloyd Stephens, who popularized the Maya Yucatán in the public’s imagination with his book Incidents of Travel in Yucatan, inspired many to make a pilgrimage to Chichén Itzá. Even before the book was published, Benjamin Norman and Baron Emanuel von Friedrichsthal traveled to Chichen after meeting Stephens, and both published the results of what they found. Friedrichsthal was the first to photograph Chichen Itza, using the recently invented daguerreotype.[30]
After Edward Thompson in 1894 purchased the Hacienda Chichén, which included Chichen Itza, he received a constant stream of visitors. In 1910 he announced his intention to construct a hotel on his property, but abandoned those plans, probably because of the Mexican Revolution.
In the early 1920s, a group of Yucatecans, led by writer/photographer Francisco Gomez Rul, began working toward expanding tourism to Yucatán. They urged Governor Felipe Carrillo Puerto to build roads to the more famous monuments, including Chichen Itza. In 1923, Governor Carrillo Puerto officially opened the highway to Chichen Itza. Gomez Rul published one of the first guidebooks to Yucatán and the ruins.
Gomez Rul's son-in-law, Fernando Barbachano Peon (a grandnephew of former Yucatán Governor Miguel Barbachano), started Yucatán’s first official tourism business in the early 1920s. He began by meeting passengers that arrived by steamship to Progreso, the port north of Mérida, and persuading them to spend a week in Yucatán, after which they would catch the next steamship to their next destination. In his first year Barbachano Peon reportedly was only able to convince seven passengers to leave the ship and join him on a tour. In the mid-1920s Barbachano Peon persuaded Edward Thompson to sell 5 acres (20,000 m2) next to Chichen for a hotel. In 1930, the Mayaland Hotel opened, just north of the Hacienda Chichén, which had been taken over by the Carnegie Institution.[31]
In 1944, Barbachano Peon purchased all of the Hacienda Chichén, including Chichen Itza, from the heirs of Edward Thompson.[29] Around that same time the Carnegie Institution completed its work at Chichen Itza and abandoned the Hacienda Chichén, which Barbachano turned into another seasonal hotel.
In 1972, Mexico enacted the Ley Federal Sobre Monumentos y Zonas Arqueológicas, Artísticas e Históricas (Federal Law over Monuments and Archeological, Artistic and Historic Sites) that put all the nation's pre-Columbian monuments, including those at Chichen Itza, under federal ownership.[32] There were now hundreds, if not thousands, of visitors every year to Chichen Itza, and more were expected with the development of the Cancún resort area to the east.
Serpent visible during the spring equinox
In the 1980s, Chichen Itza began to receive an influx of visitors on the day of the spring equinox. Today several thousand show up to see the light-and-shadow effect on the Temple of Kukulcan in which the feathered serpent god supposedly can be seen to crawl down the side of the pyramid.[33]
Chichen Itza, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, is the second-most visited of Mexico's archaeological sites.[34] The archaeological site draws many visitors from the popular tourist resort of Cancún, who make a day trip on tour buses. In 2007, Chichen Itza's El Castillo was named one of the New Seven Wonders of the World after a worldwide vote. Despite the fact that the vote was sponsored by a commercial enterprise, and that its methodology was criticized, the vote was embraced by government and tourism officials in Mexico who project that as a result of the publicity the number of tourists expected to visit Chichen will double by 2012.[35]
The ensuing publicity re-ignited debate in Mexico over the ownership of the site, which culminated on 29 March 2010 when the state of Yucatán purchased the land upon which the most recognized monuments rest from owner Hans Juergen Thies Barbachano.[36]
Over the past several years, INAH, which manages the site, has been closing monuments to public access. While visitors can walk around them, they can no longer climb them or go inside their chambers. The most recent was El Castillo, which was closed after a San Diego, California, woman fell to her death in 2006.[37]
[edit] Photo gallery
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Pre-Hispanic City of Chichen-Itza*
UNESCO World Heritage Site
Chichen-Itza-Castillo-Seen-From-East.JPG
State Party Mexico
Type Cultural
Criteria i, ii, iii
Reference 483
Region** Latin America and the Caribbean
Inscription history
Inscription 1988 (12th Session)
* Name as inscribed on World Heritage List.
** Region as classified by UNESCO.
Map of central Chichen Itza
Chichen Itza (play /tʃiːˈtʃɛn iːˈtsɑː/;[1] from Yucatec Maya: Chi'ch'èen Ìitsha',[2] "at the mouth of the well of the Itza") is a large pre-Columbian archaeological site built by the Maya civilization located in the northern center of the Yucatán Peninsula, in the Municipality of Tinúm, Yucatán state, present-day Mexico.
Chichen Itza was a major focal point in the northern Maya lowlands from the Late Classic through the Terminal Classic and into the early portion of the Early Postclassic period. The site exhibits a multitude of architectural styles, from what is called “In the Mexican Origin” and reminiscent of styles seen in central Mexico to the Puuc style found among the Puuc Maya of the northern lowlands. The presence of central Mexican styles was once thought to have been representative of direct migration or even conquest from central Mexico, but most contemporary interpretations view the presence of these non-Maya styles more as the result of cultural diffusion.
The ruins of Chichen Itza are federal property, and the site’s stewardship is maintained by Mexico’s Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia (National Institute of Anthropology and History, INAH). The land under the monuments had been privately-owned until March 29, 2010, when it was purchased by the state of Yucatán.[3]
Contents
[hide]
* 1 Name and orthography
* 2 History
o 2.1 Ascendancy
+ 2.1.1 Political organization
+ 2.1.2 Economy
o 2.2 Decline
o 2.3 Spanish arrival
* 3 Site description
o 3.1 Great North Platform
+ 3.1.1 El Castillo
+ 3.1.2 Great Ball Court
+ 3.1.3 Tzompantli
+ 3.1.4 Platform of the Eagles and the Jaguars
+ 3.1.5 Platform of Venus
+ 3.1.6 Sacbe Number One
+ 3.1.7 Cenote Sagrado
+ 3.1.8 Temple of the Tables
+ 3.1.9 Temple of the Warriors
+ 3.1.10 Group of a Thousand Columns
+ 3.1.11 Steam Bath
+ 3.1.12 El Mercado
o 3.2 Ossario Group
+ 3.2.1 Ossario
+ 3.2.2 Temple of Xtoloc
+ 3.2.3 House of the Metates and House of the Mestizas
o 3.3 The Casa Colorada Group
+ 3.3.1 Casa Colorada
+ 3.3.2 The House of the Deer
o 3.4 Central Group
+ 3.4.1 Las Monjas
+ 3.4.2 El Caracol
+ 3.4.3 Akab Dzib
o 3.5 Old Chichen
+ 3.5.1 Other structures
* 4 Caves of Balankanche
* 5 Archaeological investigations
* 6 Tourism
* 7 Photo gallery
* 8 See also
* 9 Notes
* 10 References
* 11 Further reading
* 12 External links
[edit] Name and orthography
Feathered Serpent, bottom of "El Castillo" staircase
The Maya name "Chich'en Itza" means "At the mouth of the well of the Itza." This derives from chi', meaning "mouth" or "edge", and ch'e'en, meaning "well." Itzá is the name of an ethnic-lineage group that gained political and economic dominance of the northern peninsula. The name is believed to derive from the Maya itz, meaning "magic," and (h)á, meaning "water." Itzá in Spanish is often translated as "Brujas del Agua (Witches of Water)" but a more precise translation would be Magicians of Water.[citation needed]
The name is often represented as Chichén Itzá in Spanish and when translated into other languages from Spanish to show that both parts of the name are stressed on their final syllables. Other references prefer to employ a more rigorous orthography in which the word is written according to the Maya language, using Chich'en Itzá (pronounced IPA: [t?it?'en itsá?]). This form preserves the phonemic distinction between ch' and ch, since the base word ch'e'en (which, however, does have a neutral tone vowel "e" in Maya and is not accented or stressed in Maya) begins with a glottalized affricate. The word "Itzá'" has a high rise final "a" that is followed by a glottal stop (indicated by the apostrophe).
There is evidence in the Chilam Balam books that there was another, earlier name for this city prior to the arrival of the Itza hegemony in northern Yucatán. This name is difficult to define because of the absence of a single standard of orthography, but it is represented variously as Uuc Yabnal,[4] Uuc Hab Nal,[5] or Uc Abnal.[6] While most sources agree the first word means seven, there is considerable debate as to the correct translation of the rest. Among the translations suggested are “Seven Bushes,” “Seven Great Houses,” or “Seven Lines of Abnal.”
[edit] History
Cenote Sagrado
Northern Yucatán is arid, and the rivers in the interior all run underground. There are two large, natural sink holes, called cenotes, that could have provided plentiful water year round at Chichen, making it attractive for settlement. Of the two cenotes, the "Cenote Sagrado" or Sacred Cenote (also variously known as the Sacred Well or Well of Sacrifice), is the most famous. According to post-Conquest sources (Maya and Spanish), pre-Columbian Maya sacrificed objects and human beings into the cenote as a form of worship to the Maya rain god Chaac. Edward Herbert Thompson dredged the Cenote Sagrado from 1904 to 1910, and recovered artifacts of gold, jade, pottery, and incense, as well as human remains.[7] A recent study of human remains taken from the Cenote Sagrado found that they had wounds consistent with human sacrifice.[8]
Kukulcan's Jaguar Throne, interior temple of "El Castillo"
[edit] Ascendancy
Chichen Itza rose to regional prominence towards the end of the Early Classic period (roughly 600 AD). It was, however, towards the end of the Late Classic and into the early part of the Terminal Classic that the site became a major regional capital, centralizing and dominating political, sociocultural, economic, and ideological life in the northern Maya lowlands. The ascension of Chichen Itza roughly correlates with the decline and fragmentation of the major centers of the southern Maya lowlands.
Some ethnohistoric sources claim that in about 987 a Toltec king named Topiltzin Ce Acatl Quetzalcoatl arrived here with an army from central Mexico, and (with local Maya allies) made Chichen Itza his capital, and a second Tula. The art and architecture from this period shows an interesting mix of Maya and Toltec styles. However, the recent re-dating of Chichen Itza's decline (see below) indicates that Chichen Itza is largely a Late/Terminal Classic site, while Tula remains an Early Postclassic site (thus reversing the direction of possible influence).
[edit] Political organization
Columns in the Temple of a Thousand Warriors
Several archaeologists in late 1980s suggested that unlike previous Maya polities of the Early Classic, Chichen Itza may not have been governed by an individual ruler or a single dynastic lineage. Instead, the city’s political organization could have been structured by a "multepal" system, which is characterized as rulership through council composed of members of elite ruling lineages.[9] This theory was popular in the 1990s, but in recent years, the research that supported the concept of the "multepal" system has been called into question, if not discredited. The current belief trend in Maya scholarship is toward the more traditional model of the Maya kingdoms of the Classic southern lowlands.[10]
[edit] Economy
Chichen Itza was a major economic power in the northern Maya lowlands during its apogee. Participating in the water-borne circum-peninsular trade route through its port site of Isla Cerritos, Chichen Itza was able to obtain locally unavailable resources from distant areas such as central Mexico (obsidian) and southern Central America (gold).
[edit] Decline
According to Maya chronicles (e.g., the Book of Chilam Balam of Chumayel), Hunac Ceel, ruler of Mayapan, conquered Chichen Itza in the 13th century. Hunac Ceel supposedly prophesied his own rise to power. According to custom at the time, individuals thrown into the Cenote Sagrado were believed to have the power of prophecy if they survived. During one such ceremony, the chronicles state, there were no survivors, so Hunac Ceel leaped into the Cenote Sagrado, and when removed, prophesied his own ascension.
While there is some archaeological evidence that indicates Chichén Itzá was at one time looted and sacked,[11] there appears to be greater evidence that it could not have been by Mayapan, at least not when Chichén Itzá was an active urban center. Archaeological data now indicates that Chichen Itza fell by around AD 1000, some two centuries before the rise of Mayapan.[12] Ongoing research at the site of Mayapan may help resolve this chronological conundrum.
While Chichén Itzá “collapsed” (meaning elite activities ceased and the site rapidly depopulated) it does not appear to have been completely abandoned. According to post-Conquest sources, both Spanish and Maya, the Cenote Sagrado remained a place of pilgrimage.
[edit] Spanish arrival
See also: Spanish conquest of Yucatán
In 1526 Spanish Conquistador Francisco de Montejo (a veteran of the Grijalva and Cortés expeditions) successfully petitioned the King of Spain for a charter to conquer Yucatán. His first campaign in 1527, which covered much of the Yucatán peninsula, decimated his forces but ended with the establishment of a small fort at Xaman Ha', south of what is today Cancún. Montejo returned to Yucatán in 1531 with reinforcements and established his main base at Campeche on the west coast.[13] He sent his son, Francisco Montejo The Younger, in late 1532 to conquer the interior of the Yucatán Peninsula from the north. The objective from the beginning was to go to Chichén Itzá and establish a capital.[14]
Montejo the Younger eventually arrived at Chichen Itza, which he renamed Ciudad Real. At first he encountered no resistance, and set about dividing the lands around the city and awarding them to his soldiers. The Maya became more hostile over time, and eventually they laid siege to the Spanish, cutting off their supply line to the coast, and forcing them to barricade themselves among the ruins of ancient city. Months passed, but no reinforcements arrived. Montejo the Younger attempted an all out assault against the Maya and lost 150 of his remaining forces. He was forced to abandon Chichén Itzá in 1534 under cover of darkness. By 1535, all Spanish had been driven from the Yucatán Peninsula.[15]
Montejo eventually returned to Yucatán and, by recruiting Maya from Campeche and Champoton, built a large Indio-Spanish army and conquered the peninsula.[16] The Spanish crown later issued a land grant that included Chichen Itza and by 1588 it was a working cattle ranch.[17]
[edit] Site description
site map of Chichen Itza.
The site[18] contains many fine stone buildings in various states of preservation, and many have been restored. The buildings are connected by a dense network of formerly paved roads, called sacbeob.[19] Archaeologists have found almost 100 sacbeob criss-crossing the site, and extending in all directions from the city.[20]
The buildings of Chichén Itza are grouped in a series of architectonic sets, and each set was at one time separated from the other by a series of low walls. The three best known of these complexes are the Great North Platform, which includes the monuments of El Castillo, Temple of Warriors and the Great Ball Court; The Ossario Group, which includes the pyramid of the same name as well as the Temple of Xtoloc; and the Central Group, which includes the Caracol, Las Monjas, and Akab Dzib.
South of Las Monjas, in an area known as Chichén Viejo (Old Chichén) and only open to archaeologists, are several other complexes, such as the Group of the Initial Series, Group of the Lintels, and Group of the Old Castle.
[edit] Great North Platform
[edit] El Castillo
Main article: El Castillo, Chichen Itza
High-resolution photo showing the restored sides of El Castillo
The serpent effect demonstrated with artificial light during night-time.
Dominating the center of Chichén is the Temple of Kukulkan (the Maya name for Quetzalcoatl), often referred to as "El Castillo" (the castle). This step pyramid has a ground plan of square terraces with stairways up each of the four sides to the temple on top. On the Spring and Autumn equinox, at the rising and setting of the sun, the corner of the structure casts a shadow in the shape of a plumed serpent – Kukulcan, or Quetzalcoatl – along the west side of the north staircase. On these two annual occasions, the shadows from the corner tiers slither down the northern side of the pyramid with the sun's movement to the serpent's head at the base.
East side of El Castillo
Mesoamerican cultures periodically built larger pyramids atop older ones, and this is one such example. In the mid 1930s, the Mexican government sponsored an excavation of El Castillo. After several false starts, they discovered a staircase under the north side of the pyramid. By digging from the top, they found another temple buried below the current one. Inside the temple chamber was a Chac Mool statue and a throne in the shape of Jaguar, painted red and with spots made of inlaid jade.
The Mexican government excavated a tunnel from the base of the north staircase, up the earlier pyramid’s stairway to the hidden temple, and opened it to tourists. In 2006, INAH closed the throne room to the public.
[edit] Great Ball Court
Archaeologists have identified several courts for playing the Mesoamerican ballgame in Chichén, but the Great Ball Court about 150 metres (490 ft) to the north-west of the Castillo is by far the most impressive. It is the largest ball court in ancient Mesoamerica. It measures 166 by 68 metres (545 × 223 ft). The imposing walls are 12 metres (39 ft) high, and in the center, high up on each of the long walls, are rings carved with intertwining serpents.[21]
At the base of the high interior walls are slanted benches with sculpted panels of teams of ball players. In one panel, one of the players has been decapitated and from the wound emits seven streams of blood; six become wriggling serpents and the center becomes a winding plant.
At one end of the Great Ball Court is the North Temple, popularly called the Temple of the Bearded Man. This small masonry building has detailed bas relief carving on the inner walls, including a center figure that has carving under his chin that resembles facial hair.[22] At the south end is another, much bigger temple, but in ruins.
Built into the east wall are the Temples of the Jaguar. The Upper Temple of the Jaguar overlooks the ball court and has an entrance guarded by two, large columns carved in the familiar feathered serpent motif. Inside there is a large mural, much destroyed, which depicts a battle scene.
In the entrance to the Lower Temple of the Jaguar, which opens behind the ball court, is another Jaguar throne, similar to the one in the inner temple of El Castillo, except that it is well worn and missing paint or other decoration. The outer columns and the walls inside the temple are covered with elaborate bas-relief carvings.
Great Ball Court
[edit] Tzompantli
Chichen Itza tzompantli
Of all the monuments, the Tzompantli is the closest to what one would find in the Mexican Plateau. This monument, a low, flat platform, is surrounded with carved depictions of human skulls.
[edit] Platform of the Eagles and the Jaguars
Next to El Castillo are a series of platforms. The Platform of the Eagles and the Jaguars is built in a combination Maya and Toltec styles. Each side has a staircase to the top. Carved into the sides are panels depicting Harpy Eagles[23] and Jaguars consuming what appear to be human hearts.
[edit] Platform of Venus
This platform is dedicated to the planet Venus. In its interior archaeologists discovered a collection of large cones carved out of stone, the purpose of which is unknown. This platform is placed between El Castillo and the Cenote Sagrado.
[edit] Sacbe Number One
This sacbe, which leads to the Cenote Sagrado, is the largest and most elaborate at Chichen Itza. This “white road” is 270 metres (890 ft) long with an average width of 9 metres (30 ft). It begins at a low wall a few metres from the Platform of Venus. According to archaeologists there once was an extensive building with columns at the beginning of the road.
[edit] Cenote Sagrado
Main article: Sacred Cenote
The Yucatán Peninsula is a limestone plain, with no rivers or streams. The region is pockmarked with natural sinkholes, called cenotes, which expose the water table to the surface. One of the most impressive breats is the Cenote Sagrado, which is 60 metres (200 ft) in diameter, and sheer cliffs that drop to the water table some 27 metres (89 ft) below.
The Cenote Sagrado was a place of pilgrimage for ancient Maya people who, according to ethnohistoric sources, would conduct sacrifices during times of drought. Archaeological investigations support this as thousands of objects have been removed from the bottom of the cenote, including material such as gold, jade, obsidian, shell, wood, cloth, as well as skeletons of children and men.
[edit] Temple of the Tables
To the east of El Castillo is a series of buildings, the northernmost is the Temple of the Tables. Its name comes from a series of altars at the top of the structure that are supported by small carved figures of men with upraised arms, called “atlantes.”
[edit] Temple of the Warriors
Templo de los Guerreros (Temple of the Warriors)
Detail of Temple of the Warriors showing Chac Mool
The Temple of the Warriors complex consists of a large stepped pyramid fronted and flanked by rows of carved columns depicting warriors. This complex is analogous to Temple B at the Toltec capital of Tula, and indicates some form of cultural contact between the two regions. The one at Chichen Itza, however, was constructed on a larger scale. At the top of the stairway on the pyramid’s summit (and leading towards the entrance of the pyramid’s temple) is a Chac Mool. This temple encases or entombs a former structure called The Temple of the Chac Mool. The archeological expedition and restoration of this building was done by the Carnegie Institute of Washington from 1925–1928. A key member of this restoration was Earl H. Morris who published the work from this expedition in two volumes entitled Temple of the Warriors.
[edit] Group of a Thousand Columns
Along the south wall of the Temple of Warriors are a series of what are today exposed columns, although when the city was inhabited these would have supported an extensive roof system. The columns are in three distinct sections: an east group, that extends the lines of the front of the Temple of Warriors; a north group, which runs along the south wall of the Temple of Warriors and contains pillars with carvings of soldiers in bas-relief; and a northeast group, which was apparently formed a small temple at the southeast corner of the Temple of Warriors, which contains a rectangular decorated with carvings of people or gods, as well as animals and serpents. The northeast column temple also covers a small marvel of engineering, a channel that funnels all the rainwater from the complex some 40 metres (130 ft) away to a rejollada, a former cenote.
To the south of the Group of a Thousand Columns is a group of three, smaller, interconnected buildings. The Temple of the Carved Columns is a small elegant building that consists of a front gallery with an inner corridor that leads to an altar with a Chac Mool. There are also numerous columns with rich, bas-relief carvings of some 40 personages. The Temple of the Small Tables which has an exterior motif of x’s and o’s. And the Palace of Ahau Balam Kauil (also known as Thompson’s Temple), a small building with two levels that has friezes depicting Jaguars (balam in Maya) as well as glyphs of the Maya god Kahuil.
[edit] Steam Bath
This unique building has three parts: a waiting gallery, a water bath, and a steam chamber that operated by means of heated stones.
[edit] El Mercado
This square structure anchors the southern end of the Temple of Warriors complex. It is so named for the shelf of stone that surrounds a large gallery and patio that early explorers theorized was used to display wares as in a marketplace. Today, archaeologists believe that its purpose was more ceremonial than commerce.
[edit] Ossario Group
South of the North Group is a smaller platform that has many important structures, several of which appear to be oriented toward the second largest cenote at Chichen Itza, Xtoloc.
[edit] Ossario
Ossario.
Like El Castillo, this step-pyramid temple dominates the platform, only on a smaller scale. Like its larger neighbor, it has four sides with staircases on each side. There is a temple on top, but unlike El Castillo, at the center is an opening into the pyramid which leads to a natural cave 12 metres (39 ft) below. Edward H. Thompson excavated this cave in the late 19th century, and because he found several skeletons and artifacts such as jade beads, he named the structure The High Priests' Temple. Archaeologists today believe neither that the structure was a tomb nor that the personages buried in it were priests.
[edit] Temple of Xtoloc
Outside the Ossario Platform is this recently restored temple which overlooks the other large cenote at Chichen Itza, named after the Maya word for iguana, "Xtoloc." The temple contains a series of pilasters carved with images of people, as well as representations of plants, birds and mythological scenes.
Between the Xtoloc temple and the Ossario are several aligned structures: Platform of Venus (which is similar in design to the structure of the same name next to El Castillo), Platform of the Tombs, and a small, round structure that is unnamed. These three structures were constructed in a row extending from the Ossario. Beyond them the Ossario platform terminates in a wall, which contains an opening to a sacbe that runs several hundred feet to the Xtoloc temple.
[edit] House of the Metates and House of the Mestizas
South of the Ossario, at the boundary of the platform, there are two small buildings that archaeologists believe were residences for important personages.
[edit] The Casa Colorada Group
South of the Ossario Group is another small platform that has several structures that are among the oldest in the Chichen Itza archaeological zone.
[edit] Casa Colorada
The Casa Colorada, which is Spanish for Red House, is one of the best preserved buildings at Chichen Itza. It also has a Maya name, Chichanchob, which according to INAH may mean "small holes." In one chamber there are extensive carved hieroglyphs that mention rulers of Chichen Itza and possibly of the nearby city of Ek Balam, and contain a Maya date inscribed which correlates to 869 a.d.e., one of the oldest such dates found in all of Chichen Itza.
In 2009, INAH restored a small ball court that adjoined the back wall of the Casa Colorada.[24]
[edit] The House of the Deer
While the Casa Colorada is in a good state of preservation, other buildings in the group, with one exception, are decrepit mounds. One building is half standing, named Casa del Venado (House of the Deer). The origin of the name is unknown, as there are no representations of deer or other animals on the building.
[edit] Central Group
[edit] Las Monjas
"La Iglesia" in Las Monjas complex of buildings.
One of the more notable structures at Chichen Itza is a complex of Terminal Classic buildings constructed in the Puuc architectural style. The Spanish nicknamed this complex Las Monjas ("The Nuns" or "The Nunnery") but was actually a governmental palace. Just to the east is a small temple (nicknamed La Iglesia, "The Church") decorated with elaborate masks of the rain god Chaac.
[edit] El Caracol
Main article: El Caracol, Chichen Itza
"El Caracol" observatory temple.
To the north of Las Monjas is a cockeyed, round building on a large square platform. It's nicknamed El Caracol ("the snail") because of the stone spiral staircase inside. The structure with its unusual placement on the platform and its round shape (the others are rectangular, in keeping with Maya practice), is theorized to have been a proto-observatory with doors and windows aligned to astronomical events, specifically around the path of Venus as it traverses the heavens.[25]
[edit] Akab Dzib
Main article: Akab Dzib
Located to the east of the Caracol, Akab Dzib means, in Maya, "Dark (in the "Mysterious" sense) Writing." An earlier name of the building, according to a translation of glyphs in the Casa Colorada, is Wa(k)wak Puh Ak Na, "the flat house with the excessive number of chambers,” and it was the home of the administrator of Chichén Itzá, kokom Yahawal Cho' K’ak’.[26] INAH completed a restoration of the building in 2007. It is relatively short, only 6 metres (20 ft) high, and is 50 metres (160 ft) in length and 15 metres (49 ft) wide. The long, western-facing facade has seven doorways. The eastern facade has only four doorways, broken by a large staircase that leads to the roof. This apparently was the front of the structure, and looks out over what is today a steep, but dry, cenote. The southern end of the building has one entrance. The door opens into a small chamber and on the opposite wall is another doorway, above which on the lintel are intricately carved glyphs—the “mysterious” or “obscure” writing that gives the building its name today. Under the lintel in the door jamb is another carved panel of a seated figure surrounded by more glyphs. Inside one of the chambers, near the ceiling, is a painted hand print.
[edit] Old Chichen
"Old Chichen" is the nickname for a group of structures to the south of the central site. It includes the Initial Series Group, the Phallic Temple, the Platform of the Great Turtle, the Temple of the Owls, and the Temple of the Monkeys.
[edit] Other structures
Chichen Itza also has a variety of other structures densely packed in the ceremonial center of about 5 square kilometres (1.9 sq mi) and several outlying subsidiary sites.
[edit] Caves of Balankanche
Composite Laser scan image of Chichen Itza's Cave of Balankanche, showing how the shape of its great limestone column is strongly evocative of the World Tree in Maya mythological belief systems.
Photo of the great limestone column in the Cave of Balankanche, surrounded by Tlaloc-themed incense burners
Approximately 4 km (2.5 mi) west of the Chichen Itza archaeological zone are a network of sacred caves known as Balankanche (Spanish: Gruta de Balankanche), Balamka'anche' in Modern Maya). In the caves, a large selection of ancient pottery and idols may be seen still in the positions where they were left in pre-Columbian times.
The location of the cave has been well known in modern times. Edward Thompson and Alfred Tozzer visited it in 1905. A.S. Pearse and a team of biologists explored the cave in 1932 and 1936. E. Wyllys Andrews IV also explored the cave in the 1930s. Edwin Shook and R.E. Smith explored the cave on behalf of the Carnegie Institution in 1954, and dug several trenches to recover potsherds and other artifacts. Shook determined that the cave had been inhabited over a long period, at least from the Preclassic to the post-conquest era.[27]
On 15 September 1959, José Humberto Gómez, a local guide, discovered a false wall in the cave. Behind it he found an extended network of caves with significant quantities of undisturbed archaeological remains, including pottery and stone-carved censers, stone implements and jewelry. INAH converted the cave into an underground museum, and the objects after being catalogued were returned to their original place so visitors can see them in situ.[28]
[edit] Archaeological investigations
Chichen Itza entered the popular imagination in 1843 with the book Incidents of Travel in Yucatan by John Lloyd Stephens (with illustrations by Frederick Catherwood). The book recounted Stephens’ visit to Yucatán and his tour of Maya cities, including Chichén Itzá. The book prompted other explorations of the city. In 1860, Desire Charnay surveyed Chichén Itzá and took numerous photographs that he published in Cités et ruines américaines (1863).
In 1875, Augustus Le Plongeon and his wife Alice Dixon Le Plongeon visited Chichén, and excavated a statue of a figure on its back, knees drawn up, upper torso raised on its elbows with a plate on its stomach. Augustus Le Plongeon called it “Chaacmol” (later renamed “Chac Mool,” which has been the term to describe all types of this statuary found in Mesoamerica). Teobert Maler and Alfred Maudslay explored Chichén in the 1880s and both spent several weeks at the site and took extensive photographs. Maudslay published the first long-form description of Chichen Itza in his book, Biologia Centrali-Americana.
In 1894 the United States Consul to Yucatán, Edward H. Thompson purchased the Hacienda Chichén, which included the ruins of Chichen Itza. For 30 years, Thompson explored the ancient city. His discoveries included the earliest dated carving upon a lintel in the Temple of the Initial Series and the excavation of several graves in the Ossario (High Priest’s Temple). Thompson is most famous for dredging the Cenote Sagrado (Sacred Cenote) from 1904 to 1910, where he recovered artifacts of gold, copper and carved jade, as well as the first-ever examples of what were believed to be pre-Columbian Maya cloth and wooden weapons. Thompson shipped the bulk of the artifacts to the Peabody Museum at Harvard University.
In 1913, archaeologist Sylvanus G. Morley persuaded the Carnegie Institution to fund an extensive archaeological project at Chichen Itza, which included mapping the ruins and restoring several of the monuments. The Mexican Revolution and the following government instability prevented the Carnegie from beginning work until 1924. Over the course of 10 years, the Carnegie researchers excavated and restored the Temple of Warriors and the Caracol. At the same time, the Mexican government excavated and restored El Castillo and the Great Ball Court.
Excavations next to El Castillo began in 2009
In 1926, the Mexican government charged Edward Thompson with theft, claiming he stole the artifacts from the Cenote Sagrado and smuggled them out of the country. The government seized the Hacienda Chichén. Thompson, who was in the United States at the time, never returned to Yucatán. He wrote about his research and investigations of the Maya culture in a book People of the Serpent published in 1932. He died in New Jersey in 1935. In 1944 the Mexican Supreme Court ruled that Thompson had broken no laws and returned Chichen Itza to his heirs. The Thompsons sold the hacienda to tourism pioneer Fernando Barbachano Peon.[29]
There have been two later expeditions to recover artifacts from the Cenote Sagrado, in 1961 and 1967. The first was sponsored by the National Geographic, and the second by private interests. Both projects were supervised by Mexico's National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH). INAH has conducted an ongoing effort to excavate and restore other monuments in the archaeological zone, including the Ossario, Akab D’zib, and several buildings in Chichén Viejo (Old Chichen).
In 2009, to investigate construction that predated El Castillo, archaeologists began excavations adjacent to El Castillo.
[edit] Tourism
ChichenItzaWS.ogg
Play video
Video tour of the main sights of Chichen Itza
Tourism has been a factor at Chichen Itza for more than a century. John Lloyd Stephens, who popularized the Maya Yucatán in the public’s imagination with his book Incidents of Travel in Yucatan, inspired many to make a pilgrimage to Chichén Itzá. Even before the book was published, Benjamin Norman and Baron Emanuel von Friedrichsthal traveled to Chichen after meeting Stephens, and both published the results of what they found. Friedrichsthal was the first to photograph Chichen Itza, using the recently invented daguerreotype.[30]
After Edward Thompson in 1894 purchased the Hacienda Chichén, which included Chichen Itza, he received a constant stream of visitors. In 1910 he announced his intention to construct a hotel on his property, but abandoned those plans, probably because of the Mexican Revolution.
In the early 1920s, a group of Yucatecans, led by writer/photographer Francisco Gomez Rul, began working toward expanding tourism to Yucatán. They urged Governor Felipe Carrillo Puerto to build roads to the more famous monuments, including Chichen Itza. In 1923, Governor Carrillo Puerto officially opened the highway to Chichen Itza. Gomez Rul published one of the first guidebooks to Yucatán and the ruins.
Gomez Rul's son-in-law, Fernando Barbachano Peon (a grandnephew of former Yucatán Governor Miguel Barbachano), started Yucatán’s first official tourism business in the early 1920s. He began by meeting passengers that arrived by steamship to Progreso, the port north of Mérida, and persuading them to spend a week in Yucatán, after which they would catch the next steamship to their next destination. In his first year Barbachano Peon reportedly was only able to convince seven passengers to leave the ship and join him on a tour. In the mid-1920s Barbachano Peon persuaded Edward Thompson to sell 5 acres (20,000 m2) next to Chichen for a hotel. In 1930, the Mayaland Hotel opened, just north of the Hacienda Chichén, which had been taken over by the Carnegie Institution.[31]
In 1944, Barbachano Peon purchased all of the Hacienda Chichén, including Chichen Itza, from the heirs of Edward Thompson.[29] Around that same time the Carnegie Institution completed its work at Chichen Itza and abandoned the Hacienda Chichén, which Barbachano turned into another seasonal hotel.
In 1972, Mexico enacted the Ley Federal Sobre Monumentos y Zonas Arqueológicas, Artísticas e Históricas (Federal Law over Monuments and Archeological, Artistic and Historic Sites) that put all the nation's pre-Columbian monuments, including those at Chichen Itza, under federal ownership.[32] There were now hundreds, if not thousands, of visitors every year to Chichen Itza, and more were expected with the development of the Cancún resort area to the east.
Serpent visible during the spring equinox
In the 1980s, Chichen Itza began to receive an influx of visitors on the day of the spring equinox. Today several thousand show up to see the light-and-shadow effect on the Temple of Kukulcan in which the feathered serpent god supposedly can be seen to crawl down the side of the pyramid.[33]
Chichen Itza, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, is the second-most visited of Mexico's archaeological sites.[34] The archaeological site draws many visitors from the popular tourist resort of Cancún, who make a day trip on tour buses. In 2007, Chichen Itza's El Castillo was named one of the New Seven Wonders of the World after a worldwide vote. Despite the fact that the vote was sponsored by a commercial enterprise, and that its methodology was criticized, the vote was embraced by government and tourism officials in Mexico who project that as a result of the publicity the number of tourists expected to visit Chichen will double by 2012.[35]
The ensuing publicity re-ignited debate in Mexico over the ownership of the site, which culminated on 29 March 2010 when the state of Yucatán purchased the land upon which the most recognized monuments rest from owner Hans Juergen Thies Barbachano.[36]
Over the past several years, INAH, which manages the site, has been closing monuments to public access. While visitors can walk around them, they can no longer climb them or go inside their chambers. The most recent was El Castillo, which was closed after a San Diego, California, woman fell to her death in 2006.[37]
[edit] Photo gallery
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