I have a little different field photograph this week. In honor of Darwin Day the other day, I remembered I had this photograph I took a few years ago while on a field trip in the Andes near Mendoza, Argentina.
Mendoza, Argentina and Santiago, Chile are connected by Portillo Pass through Cordillera de los Andes. Charles Darwin used some time on land during his journey in 1835 to explore this pass. On the other side of the divide, on the Argentine side, he discovered a grove of petrified trees while exploring the geology of the region (I didn't have time to look up the details of the fossils...if you know more, share it below).
In 1959 a plaque along the road on the Argentine side of the divide was erected to commemorate the discovery.
Why is the plaque broken? According to our field trip leaders, religious extremists are responsible...presumably because they don't appreciate Darwin's work or the fact that he is being remembered.
...sigh...
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