Many of Darwin's seeds survived this salt-water test, which suggested to Darwin that his theory of seed dispersal and subsequent evolution was plausible. He conducted several experiments to test whether the seeds of common garden plants could be soaked in salt water, survive, and germinate.
In the 1850s he embarked on a series of experiments to demonstrate that a variety of cross-oceanic dispersal methods were possible.
Seeds in salt waterįor his theory to work, Darwin had to prove that it was possible for mainland species to be transported across oceans and to survive on nearby islands. Eventually, Darwin suggested that species were transported from the mainland to the islands, where they continued to evolve. After his return from the Beagle, he started to challenge the tenets of special creation theory. Darwin was not satisfied by the traditional explanation provided by many naturalists of his day (including the famous Harvard naturalist Louis Agassiz), that each organism was specially created for its geographic location. Darwin was fascinated by the geographic relationship between the South American coast and its nearby islands he puzzled over why plants and animals on nearby islands were similar to those on the mainland. Some of his most vivid experiences were on the islands of the coast of South America, including the now-famous Galapagos archipelago.
Sources| Discussion Questions| Experiment Observations aboard the BeagleÄuring his five year journey around the world on HMS Beagle, Charles Darwin encountered many different landscapes and an enormous variety of flora and fauna.