QUITO, Ecuador — Natural erosion has caused the top of an iconic landmark to collapse, Ecuadorian officials announced Monday.
According to The Associated Press, Ecuador’s Environment Ministry took to Facebook to share a photo of Darwin’s Arch, a rock structure in the Galapagos Islands, without its “natural bridge.”
The new look of the 141-foot-tall formation took many residents by surprise, the AP reported.
“To know that it has changed was a bit of a shock,” Washington Tapia, the Galapagos Conservancy’s conservation director, told the news agency. “However, from a scientific point of view, it’s part of the natural process.”
Although Darwin’s Arch is a well-known scuba-diving destination, it is “not open for land visits,” according to the ministry’s Facebook post.
– The Associated Press contributed to this report.