Española, Punta Suarez
Every year by the end of March, the waved albatrosses return to the southeastern side of Española or Hood Island in order to nest. They come back after three months on the open ocean, avoiding the hottest season on the Galápagos. The very first ones to arrive are the young males that are looking for a mate.
At almost one month after the beginning of the equinox, the albatrosses on Española are not courting yet, at least not in this area of the island. During our walk today we didn’t see nor hear any activity of these magnificent birds, the largest of all in the archipelago. The young males, however, are still looking for a mate and it was possible to see several of them running after passing albatrosses. That activity was captured in this picture nearby “El Soplador” on the southern side of the trail and it shows two young adult male albatrosses running after another albatross, which escaped the picture.
In spite of the barbarian appearance of this practice, it seems to be the right way of finding a mate. The interesting thing is that young males will go after whoever passes in front of them, whether male or female, it does not matter. Once they are mounted, the one that does not protest is “the one.”
Hopefully in the following weeks we will be able to see the elaborated courtship dance that is so fascinating to witness. For the time being, the skeptical ones would ask, “Is love in the air?”
Every year by the end of March, the waved albatrosses return to the southeastern side of Española or Hood Island in order to nest. They come back after three months on the open ocean, avoiding the hottest season on the Galápagos. The very first ones to arrive are the young males that are looking for a mate.
At almost one month after the beginning of the equinox, the albatrosses on Española are not courting yet, at least not in this area of the island. During our walk today we didn’t see nor hear any activity of these magnificent birds, the largest of all in the archipelago. The young males, however, are still looking for a mate and it was possible to see several of them running after passing albatrosses. That activity was captured in this picture nearby “El Soplador” on the southern side of the trail and it shows two young adult male albatrosses running after another albatross, which escaped the picture.
In spite of the barbarian appearance of this practice, it seems to be the right way of finding a mate. The interesting thing is that young males will go after whoever passes in front of them, whether male or female, it does not matter. Once they are mounted, the one that does not protest is “the one.”
Hopefully in the following weeks we will be able to see the elaborated courtship dance that is so fascinating to witness. For the time being, the skeptical ones would ask, “Is love in the air?”
