Darwin’s Voyage of the Beagle: South America discussion

1-2 paragraphs per question

Continue the journey on the Beagle:

  • August 24th 1832: Bahia Blanca, Brazil
  • December 17th, 1832: Tierra Del Fuego
  • March 1st, 1833: Falkland Islands
  • April 29th, 1834: Rio Santa Cruz Valley
  • July 23rd, 1834: Bay of Valparaiso, Chile
  • November 21st, 1834: Harbor of Talchuhano
  • March 4th, 1835: Concepcion, Chile

Links for your journey:

Tierra del Fuego

South America – West Coast

  1. How might these locations later be used to support Darwin’s idea of slow, gradual change? Darwin started the voyage of the Beagle as a creationist, very much enamored with William Paley’s arguments in Natural Theology. Why did he ultimately reject the argument from design? What kinds of evidence did he observe on his voyage to support his idea that species changed through time rather than being specially created?
  2. What did these bones Darwin found at Punta Alta imply? Why were there no animals like this alive and if the animals went extinct, how long ago did this happen? Darwin speculated that the vegetation must have been very lush to support creatures of this size. However, the vegetation in this region now was very sparse. What did Darwin conclude?
  3. Speculate what caused the creature’s extinction. Must it have been environment change? How long ago did this creature die? If these bones were thousands of years old, did they support Lyell’s theory? How could Darwin tell or speculate, given his knowledge at the time