Islas Murcielago, Guanacaste, Costa Rica
This morning we arrived in Costa Rica and anchored next to the Murcielagos Islands; we are very excited to go snorkeling for the first time, as well as swimming and kayaking in the ocean for our second time during the expedition. The day was very nice and before Cindy the Expedition Leader woke us up, some of us saw rays jumping and spotted dolphins playing with the boat.
After breakfast we took the Zodiacs to one of the islands, and some of us decided to take the hike while others practiced aquatic activities. Around noon we left for the ship, a presentation by Bernal on volcanoes was followed by lunch, and moved to “Bahia Huevos” beach. On the way there, we spotted humpback whales far in the distance and to our surprise the whales, mother and her baby (cow and calf) appeared in front of the ship, moving slowly; it was so exciting to see the small baby next to the big mother.
According to the behavior that these whales showed, it looked like the calf was nursing. These whales probably come from Antarctica where they feed, like many other whales. The scientists have proven the fact that this migratory route represents the longest migratory distance for any mammal in the world, almost 8,500 miles! They travel all the way to Costa Rica to mate and give birth, and we were fortunate enough to see one of these calves.
Later in the afternoon, some of us took kayaks and Zodiacs inside the mangroves in order to look for wildlife. We saw plenty of birds, and at the end of the tour, the white-throated capuchin monkeys (or whiteface monkeys) came out from the darkness next to us and allowed us a fantastic view of them.
This morning we arrived in Costa Rica and anchored next to the Murcielagos Islands; we are very excited to go snorkeling for the first time, as well as swimming and kayaking in the ocean for our second time during the expedition. The day was very nice and before Cindy the Expedition Leader woke us up, some of us saw rays jumping and spotted dolphins playing with the boat.
After breakfast we took the Zodiacs to one of the islands, and some of us decided to take the hike while others practiced aquatic activities. Around noon we left for the ship, a presentation by Bernal on volcanoes was followed by lunch, and moved to “Bahia Huevos” beach. On the way there, we spotted humpback whales far in the distance and to our surprise the whales, mother and her baby (cow and calf) appeared in front of the ship, moving slowly; it was so exciting to see the small baby next to the big mother.
According to the behavior that these whales showed, it looked like the calf was nursing. These whales probably come from Antarctica where they feed, like many other whales. The scientists have proven the fact that this migratory route represents the longest migratory distance for any mammal in the world, almost 8,500 miles! They travel all the way to Costa Rica to mate and give birth, and we were fortunate enough to see one of these calves.
Later in the afternoon, some of us took kayaks and Zodiacs inside the mangroves in order to look for wildlife. We saw plenty of birds, and at the end of the tour, the white-throated capuchin monkeys (or whiteface monkeys) came out from the darkness next to us and allowed us a fantastic view of them.
