Española Island
After a smooth ride overnight we disembarked at Punta Suarez on Española Island to continue with our expedition in the southernmost island of the Galápagos archipelago. This small rocky island is one of the oldest ones in the Galápagos; it is estimated to be around five million years old. The natural history of oceanic islands is always extraordinary due to their isolation from large land masses. Many organisms tend to be either native or endemic due to genetic changes acquired through natural selection over millions of years. Española Island is home to many sea bird species. Some of these species are found nowhere else in the world but only in the Galápagos. Swallow tailed gulls, Nazca boobies and the emblematic waved albatross are good examples of endemic marine birds that arrive by the thousands every year to start a new breeding cycle. We had a long walk that took us to the nesting colonies of marine iguanas, blue-footed boobies and albatrosses of this side of Española. Besides the stunning wild life of the place we also admired the dramatic landscapes where the ocean meets the scraped rocky cliffs.
In the afternoon the National Geographic Polaris was repositioned to the northern side of the island. Gardner Bay was the paradisiacal place where we spent the rest of this great day around Española Island. The afternoon was full of activities and new places to discover and explore. Gardner Bay has areas for snorkelling, kayaking or for relaxing on a gorgeous white sand beach packed with Galápagos sea lions. The beach is a favorite place to take a leisurely stroll to observe not only the many sea lions but many Pacific green sea turtle nesting sites. These ancient reptiles come in large numbers to this beach with the intention of laying their eggs from December to May. Some of the eggs are already hatching at this time of the year. Late in the afternoon, nearly at the end of our visit we observed some frigate birds flying very close to land. These birds were concentrating their attention to a little spot on the beach. A closer look at this place revealed to us that there were baby turtles coming out of their nest. An Española Island mockingbird was seen eating one of the baby sea turtles. These difficult natural scenes are very common when baby turtles emerge in day light; this is the time when there are more active predators around. All of the animal species are carrying on the cycle of life; the death of an organism means the survival of another.
After a smooth ride overnight we disembarked at Punta Suarez on Española Island to continue with our expedition in the southernmost island of the Galápagos archipelago. This small rocky island is one of the oldest ones in the Galápagos; it is estimated to be around five million years old. The natural history of oceanic islands is always extraordinary due to their isolation from large land masses. Many organisms tend to be either native or endemic due to genetic changes acquired through natural selection over millions of years. Española Island is home to many sea bird species. Some of these species are found nowhere else in the world but only in the Galápagos. Swallow tailed gulls, Nazca boobies and the emblematic waved albatross are good examples of endemic marine birds that arrive by the thousands every year to start a new breeding cycle. We had a long walk that took us to the nesting colonies of marine iguanas, blue-footed boobies and albatrosses of this side of Española. Besides the stunning wild life of the place we also admired the dramatic landscapes where the ocean meets the scraped rocky cliffs.
In the afternoon the National Geographic Polaris was repositioned to the northern side of the island. Gardner Bay was the paradisiacal place where we spent the rest of this great day around Española Island. The afternoon was full of activities and new places to discover and explore. Gardner Bay has areas for snorkelling, kayaking or for relaxing on a gorgeous white sand beach packed with Galápagos sea lions. The beach is a favorite place to take a leisurely stroll to observe not only the many sea lions but many Pacific green sea turtle nesting sites. These ancient reptiles come in large numbers to this beach with the intention of laying their eggs from December to May. Some of the eggs are already hatching at this time of the year. Late in the afternoon, nearly at the end of our visit we observed some frigate birds flying very close to land. These birds were concentrating their attention to a little spot on the beach. A closer look at this place revealed to us that there were baby turtles coming out of their nest. An Española Island mockingbird was seen eating one of the baby sea turtles. These difficult natural scenes are very common when baby turtles emerge in day light; this is the time when there are more active predators around. All of the animal species are carrying on the cycle of life; the death of an organism means the survival of another.
