Otoque, Bona and the Panama Canal, Panama
Our second day in Panama, and we started by visiting a set of islands in the Gulf of Panama known as Otoque and Bona. The new world tropics are one of the richest biodiversity areas on the world, especially when it comes to birds. But there is a mathematical equation in tropical ecology that says the more biodiversity an area has, the less density there will be for every species. This is true for most of the tropics, but there are special places like the one we visited today. As a result of the geography of the central part of the isthmus of Panama, we have the phenomenon of upwelling in the ocean that brings an abundance of food which, in turn, brings an abundance of fish. At the same time, all this food brings about huge colonies of sea birds, like the brown booby, the blue-footed booby, the brown pelican and the male magnificent frigate birds with their red gular pouch trying to attract the females.
As if the early Zodiac cruises trough these bird colonies wasn’t enough, we ended the day with an early afternoon arrival and entrance to the Panama Canal. It was a beautiful afternoon as we entered the first chamber of a series of two at Miraflores Locks. There, with the help of the Panama Canal Locomotives (today’s picture), we were raised in two steps 54 feet before entering Miraflores Lake. We reached Pedro Miguel Locks just as the sun was setting -- couldn’t be more perfect. By the time we were raised to the level of Gatun Lake (85 feet) the Centennial Bridge was dark and we could see the spotlight highlighting the cables of this new bridge that connects both sides of the canal. As we enjoyed dinner in the lounge, we continued through the infamous Gaillard Cut to set anchor at Gatun Lake and rest quietly for tomorrow’s adventure… Smithsonian’s Barro Colorado and the Gatun Locks.
Our second day in Panama, and we started by visiting a set of islands in the Gulf of Panama known as Otoque and Bona. The new world tropics are one of the richest biodiversity areas on the world, especially when it comes to birds. But there is a mathematical equation in tropical ecology that says the more biodiversity an area has, the less density there will be for every species. This is true for most of the tropics, but there are special places like the one we visited today. As a result of the geography of the central part of the isthmus of Panama, we have the phenomenon of upwelling in the ocean that brings an abundance of food which, in turn, brings an abundance of fish. At the same time, all this food brings about huge colonies of sea birds, like the brown booby, the blue-footed booby, the brown pelican and the male magnificent frigate birds with their red gular pouch trying to attract the females.
As if the early Zodiac cruises trough these bird colonies wasn’t enough, we ended the day with an early afternoon arrival and entrance to the Panama Canal. It was a beautiful afternoon as we entered the first chamber of a series of two at Miraflores Locks. There, with the help of the Panama Canal Locomotives (today’s picture), we were raised in two steps 54 feet before entering Miraflores Lake. We reached Pedro Miguel Locks just as the sun was setting -- couldn’t be more perfect. By the time we were raised to the level of Gatun Lake (85 feet) the Centennial Bridge was dark and we could see the spotlight highlighting the cables of this new bridge that connects both sides of the canal. As we enjoyed dinner in the lounge, we continued through the infamous Gaillard Cut to set anchor at Gatun Lake and rest quietly for tomorrow’s adventure… Smithsonian’s Barro Colorado and the Gatun Locks.
