The terrestrial ecosystems of the islands cannot survive without a parallel adjacent marine environment protection, which is why on March 18, 1999 it was made effective the Galapagos Marine Reserve, whose limits are 40 kilometers taken from the baseline of the exterior islands of the archipelago, making this the second largest marine reserve in the world.

This area has special biological characteristics, mainly due to ocean currents from tropical and subtropical regions converging on the islands, bringing animals from around the Pacific and part of the Indo-Pacific, creating a rich biodiversity and producing also a genetic isolation curtain. The temperatures of these streams also contribute to the variety of marine ecosystems.

That is why here there is a 23% of endemism and is also a refuge for endangered species of reptiles and marine mammals such as turtles and whales that found in the archipelago their main breeding site.