Charles Darwin published his theory of evolution and natural selection in 1859 in his book On the Origin of Species. Darwin observed that species vary in traits and the individuals with traits better suited to their environment tended to survive and pass on their genes more than others, resulting in evolution over time as populations diverged into new species. He saw examples of this on the Galapagos Islands with finches and tortoises varying between islands. His theory proposed that all life on Earth descended from common ancestors and adapted through natural selection to survive in their environments.