North Seymour & Rabida Islands
The massive arrival of the Panamic Current bathes the Galápagos, bringing warm temperatures to the sea, and transparency to the water. Every day we are enjoying long hours of snorkeling, and it is really hard to get out of the water…
Only the excitement of the land wildlife drives us to hike the trails and we find this morning at North Seymour an island full of red balloons! But not just any balloons…, these are frigate birds, which at this time of the year have their red gullar pouches totally puffed up. This is an incredible courtship display that the male frigates perform in order to attract females and start their new nesting season.
On this island we find both of the species that nest in the Galápagos: the Great and the Magnificent! And we find some which have already started to do so over the green salt bush, their favorite place to nest. There are sightings of juveniles and immatures which have abandoned their nests and are learning the lengthy process of becoming independent from their parents. They will only become mature birds at the age of five!
Along the trail we find some blue-footed boobies as well as land and marine iguanas, which have also started to nest, digging holes in the ground to lay eggs and take advantage of the hot temperatures we have at the moment to incubate their eggs.
We are seeing fascinating animal wildlife, but the tempting colors of the sea are calling us, and we respond! We go snorkeling to find large schools of tropical fish: yellow-tailed surgeons, king angels, five spotted anthies, triggerfish, blennies, along with numerous white-tipped reef sharks, Galápagos sea lions and fur seals—simply spectacular!
The National Geographic Endeavour now motors to Rabida Island, and we enjoy a feast at lunch, and upon arrival we have several outings for glass-bottom boaters and snorkelers as well. Here the fish parade continues and in addition to what we saw in the morning, we find the sea floor covered with red star fish-Panamic cushion sea-stars, dozens of parrotfish, reef sharks and the company of a sea turtle makes our afternoon another successful one!
The end of the day comes with a lovely walk on the iron-rich soil of Rabida island, which gives it a beautiful red color, making a terrific contrast with the green vegetation of the island, where we find a number of sea lions lying on the beach, and as we walk to the look-out, we find the prickly pear cactus and a spot few finches along the way.
Today the sunset is simply spectacular, and now it’s time for us to process all that we have experienced with the daily recap on board the National Geographic Endeavour.
