Isla Carmen, Isla Danzante
We woke this morning after a quiet night at anchor in a sheltered cove of Isla del Carmen, one of the larger islands in the Gulf of California and part of the Loreto Marine Preserve. What an island! Beaches and cliffs and green tables above the sea. We couldn’t wait to get ashore and explore.
After breakfast, explore we did. Hikers wandered at various paces up the dramatic Arroyo Rojo, suitably named for its red rocks. But Carmen had further wonders to reveal.
Notable discoveries were clear views of an ash-throated flycatcher, a pair of osprey, plenty of fresh droppings from the Baja California Sur desert big horn sheep introduced here in 1994, and invertebrates galore. A cactus longhorn beetle (Moneilema gigas) was spotted midway up a young cardon, one foot gripping a few spines. This large beetle, like many in Baja, has adapted to eat cacti. However, it doesn’t usually chow down on a big, twenty-foot cardon. Although it can decimate a small cardon-let, it usually makes a meal of the smaller cholla or prickly pear.
Further up the wash, hikers scrambling up a steep, rocky grade came eye to eye with a large tarantula out on a bit of bleached cactus-wood. Most likely a male out hunting for a mate, this hairy-abdomened arachnid allowed us long and close looks.
There were a few spats of rain toward the end of our walks, but the clouds held, and rather than a deluge, we were treated to dramatic light on the rugged rocks of Carmen. In the afternoon, we shifted the National Geographic Sea Lion to Isla Danzante, where we spent a long and luxurious time on the beach kayaking, snorkeling, clambering, and poking along the beautiful shoreline. A few eared grebes paddled close in, allowing us clear looks at their garnet eyes, and a pair of whimbrel winged in as well.
It was the first time we’ve put kayaks in the water on this trip, and Danzante provided headlands, nooks, and crannies for exploration. Snorkelers were treated to a wonderful array of sea stars and even an aggregation of stone scorpion fish. We all came back to the ship full of stories of our own discoveries—a strawberry cactus in bloom! a chocolate chip sea star! a Costa’s hummingbird gleaning insects from the pitaya dulce fruit!—and eager to see what tomorrow will bring.
We woke this morning after a quiet night at anchor in a sheltered cove of Isla del Carmen, one of the larger islands in the Gulf of California and part of the Loreto Marine Preserve. What an island! Beaches and cliffs and green tables above the sea. We couldn’t wait to get ashore and explore.
After breakfast, explore we did. Hikers wandered at various paces up the dramatic Arroyo Rojo, suitably named for its red rocks. But Carmen had further wonders to reveal.
Notable discoveries were clear views of an ash-throated flycatcher, a pair of osprey, plenty of fresh droppings from the Baja California Sur desert big horn sheep introduced here in 1994, and invertebrates galore. A cactus longhorn beetle (Moneilema gigas) was spotted midway up a young cardon, one foot gripping a few spines. This large beetle, like many in Baja, has adapted to eat cacti. However, it doesn’t usually chow down on a big, twenty-foot cardon. Although it can decimate a small cardon-let, it usually makes a meal of the smaller cholla or prickly pear.
Further up the wash, hikers scrambling up a steep, rocky grade came eye to eye with a large tarantula out on a bit of bleached cactus-wood. Most likely a male out hunting for a mate, this hairy-abdomened arachnid allowed us long and close looks.
There were a few spats of rain toward the end of our walks, but the clouds held, and rather than a deluge, we were treated to dramatic light on the rugged rocks of Carmen. In the afternoon, we shifted the National Geographic Sea Lion to Isla Danzante, where we spent a long and luxurious time on the beach kayaking, snorkeling, clambering, and poking along the beautiful shoreline. A few eared grebes paddled close in, allowing us clear looks at their garnet eyes, and a pair of whimbrel winged in as well.
It was the first time we’ve put kayaks in the water on this trip, and Danzante provided headlands, nooks, and crannies for exploration. Snorkelers were treated to a wonderful array of sea stars and even an aggregation of stone scorpion fish. We all came back to the ship full of stories of our own discoveries—a strawberry cactus in bloom! a chocolate chip sea star! a Costa’s hummingbird gleaning insects from the pitaya dulce fruit!—and eager to see what tomorrow will bring.
