VOYAGE of the BEAGLE (1831-1836 CE) Macquarie University Big History School: Core

READING 5.2.4 VOYAGE OF THE BEAGLE (1831-1836 CE) Macquarie University Big History School: Core

Lexile® measure: 780L MACQUARIE UNIVERSITY BIG HISTORY SCHOOL: CORE - READING 5.2.4. VOYAGE OF THE BEAGLE: 1831-1836 CE - 780L 2

Below are the highlights of the 5-year voyage of the HMS Beagle. On this voyage, Charles Darwin formed his ideas around evolution by natural selection. VOYAGE OF THE BEAGLE (1831-1836 CE) By David Baker

DECEMBER 27 1831: The HMS Beagle set sail from England on a journey around the world. The ship was under the command of Captain Fitzroy. Also on board was 22- year old Charles Darwin. Darwin is the ship’s naturalist.

JANUARY 16 1832: The Beagle made landfall at St. Jago, Cape Verde Islands. The islands are just off the coast of West Africa. Darwin investigated the geology of the volcanic island. Darwin also collected many tropical animals. He was very interested in these creatures. He saw octopi that changed colours. There were also birds, which weren’t afraid of humans. Darwin also saw a layer of seashells in the rocky cliffs of the island. This implied that the Earth was slowly changing over time. New islands were being created and rising out of the sea.

FEBRUARY 28 1832: The Beagle reached Brazil. Darwin saw slavery here, which disgusted him. The following year, the British Empire would abolish slavery. Darwin visited the lush forests and islands of Brazil. He collected more fascinating specimens. Darwin stayed for a time in Rio di Janeiro. Here, a deadly illness spread through the Beagle’s crew.

JULY 26 1832 The Beagle reached Uruguay. Shortly after, the crew were called upon by local authorities to help put down revolts. MACQUARIE UNIVERSITY BIG HISTORY SCHOOL: CORE - READING 5.2.4. VOYAGE OF THE BEAGLE: 1831-1836 CE - 780L 3

AUGUST 22 1832 SEPTEMBER 15 1835 The Beagle went south to Argentina. From there, Darwin made excursions The Beagle reached the Galapagos Islands. The Galapagos is made up into Patagonia on horseback. He found rheas (a relative of the ostrich), of 21 islands, which are isolated from the rest of the world. This meant and armadillos. A few weeks later, he saw the evolutionary ancestors of that there is a high level of biodiversity on the islands. Here, Darwin these armadillos. They were the size of hippos. He later found fossils encountered giant Galapagos tortoises. They weighed 660 pounds and of sloths, which were 10 metres long. The main science of the time could live for 100 years. Darwin noticed that the tortoises looked different suggested that huge disasters wiped out these large animals. This left only island to island. He also started collecting finches. The finches also the smaller animals. Darwin began to question this theory. differed from island to island. Why should species differ in these different but nearby environments? Here was a puzzle… DECEMBER 18 1832 The Beagle reached the tip of South America at Tierra del Fuego. There, 20 OCTOBER - 19 DECEMBER 1835 Darwin met foraging people. They had been in the region for thousands The Beagle made the long journey across the Pacific Ocean. They stopped of years, since humans had crossed the Bering Strait and migrated south. in Tahiti on November 15th. From there, the Beagle sailed to New Zealand. From there, the Beagle had a quick rest in the Falkland Islands. Here, Darwin spent 11 days observing the Maori and British Settlers. From there, Darwin discovered fossils that looked very similar to ones he had found in the Beagle set sail for Australia. Britain. JANUARY 12 1836 AUGUST 8 1833 The Beagle arrived in Sydney. Darwin was fascinated by kangaroos and The Beagle returned to Argentina. Darwin then began his own expedition puzzled by the platypus. From there, the Beagle headed to Tasmania, and inland. Over two months, Darwin looked for new species and fossils. He then Western Australia. After that, the Beagle began the long journey found fossils of Andes mastodons. These were giant elephants that lived home. in the area until humans arrived. The humans probably drove them OCTOBER 2 1836 to extinction. Similarly, Darwin discovered the fossil of a horse tooth. The Beagle crossed the Indian Ocean, rounding the Cape of South Africa. Horses had become extinct in the America until Europeans reintroduced They finally arrived back home in Great Britain. Darwin published his them. Rebels laying siege to the city trapped Darwin in Buenos Aires. He account of the voyage the following year. This made him a celebrity in was eventually able to escape, and met the Beagle in Uruguay. British society. The mystery of the finches remained. A colleague of his, John Gould, pointed out how they were separate species, separated island NOVEMBER 1833 - JUNE 1834 by island. Each species was well-suited to its environment. This lit a – The Beagle revisited Uruguay, Argentina, and the Falkland Islands. It spark in Darwin’s mind. It was the beginning of Darwin’s thoughts about then rounded the tip of South America, through the dangerous Strait of evolution. An idea that would shock the world when he published it 23 Magellan. The Beagle then explored the coast of Chile. years later. This would forever change our understanding of biology. JUNE - NOVEMBER 1834 Darwin explored the Andes mountains. He became very ill and had to spend several weeks resting. Meanwhile, he had collected many fossils. However, he found no evidence of the catastrophe that supposedly caused their extinction. FEBRUARY 20 1835 Darwin witnessed an earthquake in Valdivia, Chile. The Beagle quickly sailed off to avoid danger. Upon returning, Darwin noticed that the seafloor had been raised by several metres. This was the result of plate tectonics. The South American plate had been pushed up, in the same motion that created the Andes. MACQUARIE UNIVERSITY BIG HISTORY SCHOOL: CORE - READING 5.2.4. VOYAGE OF THE BEAGLE: 1831-1836 CE - 780L 4

REFERENCES Darwin, Charles. The Voyage of the Beagle. New York: Cosimo Classics, 2008. Browne, Janet. Charles Darwin: Voyaging. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1996.

IMAGE CREDITS ‘HMS Beagle’ Credit: Owen Stanley, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:HMSBeagle. jpg ‘Galapagos Islands (Image ID: 8270)’ Credit: Jacques Descloitres, MODIS Rapid Response Project at NASA GSFC, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Galapagos-satellite-2002. jpg

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