Part 1, Chapter 7 Summary

It took Lisle only seventy-two hours to arrive at Daphne Major with his field assistant, and they immediately began banding baby finches. The islands of the Galapagos received heavy rains that year. They also received thunderstorms, which are virtually unheard of in the islands. There were flash flood and landslides as well. The new year started with these storms.

El Niso hit the Galapagos that year and caused so much rain that the flora of the islands changed. The cacti died from all the water, and vines took over, making small, soft seeds plentiful. The plants of the Daphne Major dropped seeds at least seven times that year, and the birds took multiple mates, which led to multiple clutches. In fact, some of the birds Lisle and his assistant banded upon their arrival were mating by the end of the wet...