Peter and rosemary discovered a natural ecosystem with an extreme climate, oscillating between cycles of intense drought and abundant rainfall, as well as an uncontaminated area that had never been explored by humans. This was an excellent location to study the evolution of Galapagos finches.
For their outstanding long-term studies showing evolution in action in Galápagosfinches, Peter and Rosemary Grant are renowned.
They have shown that natural selection is responsible for the incredibly quick changes in body and beak size in response to variations in the availability of food.
Due to the lack of predators or rivals for the finches, Daphne Major makes an excellent location for research.
(The cactus finch is the only other finch on the island.)
The weather, and consequently the availability of food, has a significant impact on the medium ground finch's capacity to survive.
