1 00:00:01,840 --> 00:00:07,200 Speaker 1: Welcome to brain Stuff, a production of iHeartRadio Hey brain 2 00:00:07,240 --> 00:00:11,320 Speaker 1: Stuff Lauren vogelbamb here. The flora and fauna of the 3 00:00:11,360 --> 00:00:16,759 Speaker 1: Galapagos and similar biodiversity hotspots are as beautiful and weird 4 00:00:17,000 --> 00:00:21,120 Speaker 1: as they are scientifically fascinating, and there is a roster 5 00:00:21,200 --> 00:00:24,640 Speaker 1: of measures in place to protect them, including highly regulated 6 00:00:24,720 --> 00:00:29,000 Speaker 1: tourism and fishing protocols, including a sort of protected super 7 00:00:29,080 --> 00:00:34,680 Speaker 1: highway for sea creatures. This swimway, a major marine animal 8 00:00:34,720 --> 00:00:38,200 Speaker 1: migration route, spans more than forty six thousand square miles 9 00:00:38,280 --> 00:00:41,160 Speaker 1: or one hundred and twenty thousand square kilometers between Ecuador's 10 00:00:41,200 --> 00:00:45,520 Speaker 1: Galapgos Islands and Costa Rica's Cocos Island, both UNESCO World 11 00:00:45,560 --> 00:00:50,280 Speaker 1: Heritage Sites. Wildlife like sea turtles and numerous other endangered 12 00:00:50,280 --> 00:00:53,959 Speaker 1: species frequently traverse this roughly four hundred mile route that's 13 00:00:53,960 --> 00:00:57,560 Speaker 1: about six hundred and fifty kilometers looking for food and nesting. 14 00:00:59,720 --> 00:01:03,440 Speaker 1: While while each country protects the waterways around its respective islands, 15 00:01:03,720 --> 00:01:06,840 Speaker 1: the well trodden passage between the tube is riddled with 16 00:01:06,920 --> 00:01:11,120 Speaker 1: life threatening risks for marine life, largely linked to overfishing. 17 00:01:13,040 --> 00:01:17,040 Speaker 1: The underwater highway, first proposed in twenty eighteen, could change 18 00:01:17,080 --> 00:01:20,520 Speaker 1: that and help model conservation for other important areas around 19 00:01:20,520 --> 00:01:23,200 Speaker 1: the world. Here's how it works and how it could 20 00:01:23,240 --> 00:01:29,320 Speaker 1: benefit our increasingly threatened oceans. Okay, first off, there won't 21 00:01:29,360 --> 00:01:33,959 Speaker 1: be a literal expressway with turtles and sharks traversing lanes 22 00:01:34,000 --> 00:01:38,120 Speaker 1: between these two locations, and the marine passage won't require 23 00:01:38,240 --> 00:01:41,319 Speaker 1: construction or physical guard rails like some of the land 24 00:01:41,360 --> 00:01:45,080 Speaker 1: based bridges and tunnels that safeguard migratory terrestrial animals around 25 00:01:45,080 --> 00:01:50,320 Speaker 1: the world. Instead, the Cocos Galapagos Swimway will protect sea 26 00:01:50,320 --> 00:01:53,480 Speaker 1: life from human driven threats like fishing with a series 27 00:01:53,520 --> 00:01:58,320 Speaker 1: of interwoven regulations and oversight. The project will set up 28 00:01:58,360 --> 00:02:03,360 Speaker 1: no fishing zones linking two existing marine protected areas or MPAs, 29 00:02:03,920 --> 00:02:07,520 Speaker 1: the Galapagos Marine Reserve, established in nineteen ninety eight and 30 00:02:07,640 --> 00:02:10,920 Speaker 1: Cocos Island National Park, which has been protected since the 31 00:02:11,000 --> 00:02:16,640 Speaker 1: nineteen eighties. While animals are already largely safe within those reserves, 32 00:02:17,040 --> 00:02:20,119 Speaker 1: they face severe threats from commercial fishing, such as net 33 00:02:20,240 --> 00:02:24,480 Speaker 1: entanglements when they enter open waters. For the article of 34 00:02:24,480 --> 00:02:27,079 Speaker 1: this episode is based on how Stuffworks. Spoke via email 35 00:02:27,320 --> 00:02:32,440 Speaker 1: Tom O'Hara, communications manager for Galapagos Conservation Trust. He said 36 00:02:32,840 --> 00:02:36,160 Speaker 1: the ocean between Galapagos and Cocos is a popular place 37 00:02:36,160 --> 00:02:39,560 Speaker 1: for industrial fishing fleets to work, including those focus on 38 00:02:39,639 --> 00:02:43,440 Speaker 1: harvesting shark fins often destined for the Asian market. In 39 00:02:43,560 --> 00:02:47,080 Speaker 1: order to fully protect the swimway, new MPAs must be 40 00:02:47,160 --> 00:02:53,440 Speaker 1: created and implemented. In twenty twenty two, Ecuador made headway 41 00:02:53,560 --> 00:02:57,440 Speaker 1: with its new Harmandad Marine Reserve. The reserve added more 42 00:02:57,480 --> 00:03:00,400 Speaker 1: than twenty three thousand square miles that's sixty thous square 43 00:03:00,440 --> 00:03:04,120 Speaker 1: kilometers to Ecuadors protected areas of the ocean. A roughly 44 00:03:04,160 --> 00:03:06,440 Speaker 1: half of that includes a now fishing zone to protect 45 00:03:06,440 --> 00:03:11,000 Speaker 1: Ecuador's portion of the swimway, and now the initiative relies 46 00:03:11,000 --> 00:03:16,320 Speaker 1: on Costa Rica expanding its protections. Houstuffworks also spoke with 47 00:03:16,400 --> 00:03:20,320 Speaker 1: Todd Steiner, executive director of the Turtle Island Restoration Network. 48 00:03:20,880 --> 00:03:24,160 Speaker 1: Steiner is a founding member of Mygramar, a collective of 49 00:03:24,200 --> 00:03:28,799 Speaker 1: scientists studying the movement of Keystone migratory marine species Migramar 50 00:03:28,960 --> 00:03:34,079 Speaker 1: is spearheading this swimway initiative. A Steiner explained that countries 51 00:03:34,160 --> 00:03:38,680 Speaker 1: have what's called exclusive economic zones. A quote, every country 52 00:03:38,720 --> 00:03:41,000 Speaker 1: owns two hundred miles that's three hundred and twenty two 53 00:03:41,040 --> 00:03:44,080 Speaker 1: kilometers out from its land mass. A Costa Rica owns 54 00:03:44,120 --> 00:03:46,560 Speaker 1: two hundred miles from its coast, and it also owns 55 00:03:46,560 --> 00:03:49,960 Speaker 1: two hundred miles around Cocos Island. A Cocos Island and 56 00:03:50,000 --> 00:03:52,760 Speaker 1: the Galapagos are three hundred and ninety four miles that's 57 00:03:52,800 --> 00:03:56,119 Speaker 1: six hundred and thirty four kilometers apart, so the exclusive 58 00:03:56,160 --> 00:03:59,600 Speaker 1: economic zones just overlap. If you can get these two 59 00:03:59,600 --> 00:04:02,840 Speaker 1: countries to agree, you can protect a large swath of 60 00:04:02,880 --> 00:04:09,160 Speaker 1: this important migration corridor to run effectively. This protected swimway 61 00:04:09,200 --> 00:04:13,280 Speaker 1: requires oversight from the government and scientists in the Galapagos. 62 00:04:13,440 --> 00:04:17,640 Speaker 1: This is already in motion, O'Hara said. The Galapagos Marine 63 00:04:17,640 --> 00:04:19,920 Speaker 1: Reserve is policed by both the Marine Unit of the 64 00:04:19,920 --> 00:04:24,360 Speaker 1: Galapagos National Park Directorate and by the Ecuadorian Navy. There 65 00:04:24,440 --> 00:04:27,279 Speaker 1: is also increasing use of technology such as satellites to 66 00:04:27,440 --> 00:04:33,120 Speaker 1: monitor fishing activity. Various sea creatures frequent this migratory route 67 00:04:33,160 --> 00:04:37,120 Speaker 1: throughout their life cycles. It sees turtles and sharks, including 68 00:04:37,240 --> 00:04:42,360 Speaker 1: six endangered species whale sharks, tiger sharks, leatherback turtles, green turtles, 69 00:04:42,560 --> 00:04:48,200 Speaker 1: silky sharks, and scalloped hammerhead sharks. Creatures follow this specific 70 00:04:48,279 --> 00:04:51,800 Speaker 1: route because it's easy to navigate. The islands are the 71 00:04:51,880 --> 00:04:56,240 Speaker 1: volcanic mountain tops of a long underwater mountain range. Because 72 00:04:56,279 --> 00:04:59,800 Speaker 1: the range is volcanic, it's also magnetic. Species use this 73 00:04:59,839 --> 00:05:04,479 Speaker 1: to navigate from point to point. The Swimways Mountain range 74 00:05:04,520 --> 00:05:08,080 Speaker 1: is packed with biodiversity, providing food for migratory animals along 75 00:05:08,160 --> 00:05:11,359 Speaker 1: their journeys. The migrators also flock to the Cocos and 76 00:05:11,400 --> 00:05:16,680 Speaker 1: Galapagos Islands for nesting and foraging, and many of these 77 00:05:16,680 --> 00:05:20,440 Speaker 1: species can use all the help they can get. For example, 78 00:05:20,560 --> 00:05:24,159 Speaker 1: the Galapagos green turtle averages about one hundred eggs per nest, 79 00:05:24,520 --> 00:05:27,680 Speaker 1: yet only two on average reach the adult stage due 80 00:05:27,680 --> 00:05:32,080 Speaker 1: to natural predators like crabs and birds. Once these two 81 00:05:32,320 --> 00:05:35,880 Speaker 1: ish hatchlings reach adulthood and begin to travel, they encounter 82 00:05:36,040 --> 00:05:40,000 Speaker 1: even more threats, again like commercial fishing. According to the 83 00:05:40,080 --> 00:05:43,520 Speaker 1: World Wildlife Fund, or WWF, more than two hundred and 84 00:05:43,520 --> 00:05:46,680 Speaker 1: fifty thousand turtles around the world die after being caught 85 00:05:46,680 --> 00:05:51,960 Speaker 1: in fisheries, largely from fishing nets. These are bad odds 86 00:05:51,960 --> 00:05:55,000 Speaker 1: for the Galapagos green turtle, which is listed as endangered 87 00:05:55,040 --> 00:05:58,520 Speaker 1: by the WWF. It's even worse news for the leatherback 88 00:05:58,560 --> 00:06:01,080 Speaker 1: sea turtle, which is on the verge of extinction due 89 00:06:01,080 --> 00:06:05,359 Speaker 1: to overfishing pressures. The WWF reports of the Pacific Ocean 90 00:06:05,440 --> 00:06:09,200 Speaker 1: may have only two thousand, three hundred adult leatherback females remaining. 91 00:06:11,520 --> 00:06:15,680 Speaker 1: The Cocos Galapagos Swimway was designed to safeguard marine migrators 92 00:06:15,839 --> 00:06:18,880 Speaker 1: like the sea turtle, but turtles aren't the only animals 93 00:06:18,920 --> 00:06:22,400 Speaker 1: that would benefit from enhanced protections. After all, everything on 94 00:06:22,440 --> 00:06:27,320 Speaker 1: our planet is linked, O'Hara said. Island, coastal and marine 95 00:06:27,320 --> 00:06:31,839 Speaker 1: ecosystems are all linked, and healthy ocean biodiversity helps terrestrial 96 00:06:31,920 --> 00:06:36,039 Speaker 1: and coastal species that depend directly or indirectly on the ocean. 97 00:06:36,800 --> 00:06:40,520 Speaker 1: Carbon dioxide is absorbed and stored by marine ecosystems such 98 00:06:40,560 --> 00:06:44,960 Speaker 1: as mangroves, and by marine creatures themselves. Protecting the seas 99 00:06:44,960 --> 00:06:48,680 Speaker 1: around the Galapagos is not just about protecting marine wildlife, 100 00:06:48,839 --> 00:06:57,039 Speaker 1: It's about safeguarding the future of our own species. Today's 101 00:06:57,040 --> 00:06:59,680 Speaker 1: episode is based on the article the Galapagos and Cocos 102 00:06:59,680 --> 00:07:03,120 Speaker 1: Islands are building a turtle super Highway on how stuffworks 103 00:07:03,120 --> 00:07:06,440 Speaker 1: dot com, written by Stephanie Vermilion. Brain Stuff is production 104 00:07:06,480 --> 00:07:09,200 Speaker 1: of iHeartRadio in partnership with HowStuffWorks dot com and is 105 00:07:09,200 --> 00:07:12,560 Speaker 1: produced by Tyler Klang. For more podcasts from My Heart Radio, 106 00:07:12,800 --> 00:07:15,880 Speaker 1: visit the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen 107 00:07:15,960 --> 00:07:16,920 Speaker 1: to your favorite shows.