Isla San Pedro Martir
A steep-walled white island and a sky full of seabirds grabbed our attention as we took to the decks to see what the day had in store. Overnight, a red-billed tropicbird joined our shipboard compliment. Because it needs a long stretch of unobstructed water as runway, the tropicbird was still with us in the morning. Naturalist Pete Pederson gently held our visitor for a few minutes as we and the bird scrutinized each other. Pete then lofted the bird above the bow and off it flew with quite a tale to tell.
Upon close-up viewing from Zodiacs we observed that the volcanic rock is elegantly colored and patterned under the veneer of white and pink guano. This guano was mined for many years, as the relict catchment stone walls attest. Today, the island is an important and protected seabird roosting and nesting site. Blue-footed and brown boobies, red-billed tropicbirds, brown pelicans, Brandt’s cormorants and many other species raise their young here, taking advantage of the abundant food in the surrounding waters. Rafts of eared grebes sat offshore, going through their annual molt, some brought to an untimely end by aggressive yellow-footed gulls. California sea lions take advantage of the few cobble beaches to rest and, later in the year, as breeding areas.
A lunchtime conundrum: watch sperm whales or enjoy homemade pizza. This was easily solved, as Captain Kalbach kept the Sea Bird around the whales during lunch and throughout the afternoon. Numerous cow-calf pairs kept our attention with occasional seabirds passing by. A huge whitish male appeared midway through the afternoon, and a few of us were treated to the sight of a breeching sperm whale.
Not to be ignored, bottlenose dolphins swam around our ship, rode our bow and performed leaps worthy of praise and awe.
A steep-walled white island and a sky full of seabirds grabbed our attention as we took to the decks to see what the day had in store. Overnight, a red-billed tropicbird joined our shipboard compliment. Because it needs a long stretch of unobstructed water as runway, the tropicbird was still with us in the morning. Naturalist Pete Pederson gently held our visitor for a few minutes as we and the bird scrutinized each other. Pete then lofted the bird above the bow and off it flew with quite a tale to tell.
Upon close-up viewing from Zodiacs we observed that the volcanic rock is elegantly colored and patterned under the veneer of white and pink guano. This guano was mined for many years, as the relict catchment stone walls attest. Today, the island is an important and protected seabird roosting and nesting site. Blue-footed and brown boobies, red-billed tropicbirds, brown pelicans, Brandt’s cormorants and many other species raise their young here, taking advantage of the abundant food in the surrounding waters. Rafts of eared grebes sat offshore, going through their annual molt, some brought to an untimely end by aggressive yellow-footed gulls. California sea lions take advantage of the few cobble beaches to rest and, later in the year, as breeding areas.
A lunchtime conundrum: watch sperm whales or enjoy homemade pizza. This was easily solved, as Captain Kalbach kept the Sea Bird around the whales during lunch and throughout the afternoon. Numerous cow-calf pairs kept our attention with occasional seabirds passing by. A huge whitish male appeared midway through the afternoon, and a few of us were treated to the sight of a breeching sperm whale.
Not to be ignored, bottlenose dolphins swam around our ship, rode our bow and performed leaps worthy of praise and awe.
