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Charles Darwin, then 22, boards HMS Beagle as captain's assistant.
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Darwin decides to write a book containing his findings during the voyage.
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Darwin and the rest of the crew undergo the line-crossing ceremony that occurs when a ship crosses the equator.
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Darwin explores the rainforests of Brazil. He discovers a diverse population of plants and animals there.
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Darwin discovers giant fossils.
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Captain Robert FitzRoy attempts to bring Christianity to the natives in South America, but ultimately fails.
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Darwin discovers brachiopod fossils inside of rocks on the island.
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Darwin explores the Pampas with the locals, known as the gauchos.
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Darwin experiences the eruption of Mount Osomo along with the earthquakes that followed.
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Darwin discovers a wide variety of plant, bird, and tortoise species unique to each island, but also related to the mainland species. He finds a new species of iguana that spends much of its time in the ocean, and birds and crabs that possess the ability to blend in with its surroundings. When he returns to London, he discovers that a group of birds that he documented were actually all finches.
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Darwin finds that the mammals, specifically marsupials, of Australia are completely different from those in other regions of the world.
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Darwin studies coral reefs around the islands to test his theory of atoll reef formation.
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Darwin observes the cooled lava flows that cover the old ground surface and the short grasses and bushes that grow on top.
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Darwin views Table Mountain, an exposed, horizontally stratified rock formation that is 3,500 feet high.
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Darwin discovers even more new species while inside the jungles during this unexpected detour.
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The Beagle finally returns to England after a long, nearly 5 year voyage.