Gulf of Panama & Iguana Island Wildlife Preserve
After a very calm night’s sleep, we woke up today inside the Gulf of Panama anchored on the lee side of Otoque Island. Otoque, Bona and Estiva Islands are three islets that are only 25 miles off of the Pacific entrance to the Panama Canal and offer a fantastic chance for marine bird watching. The tall ledges of the rocky islets provide a perfect nesting site for two species of boobies and the tall trees provide sites for magnificent frigatebirds and brown pelicans. This morning we took a cruise on our faithful Zodiacs around this bird haven. What a pleasure!! All the birds were going around their business which included preening, feeding, kleptoparasitizing , tending to the chicks, courting, nest-building, and more. It is such an amazing feeling when one is able to share a moment in nature as the animals allow us into their realm.
Back to the ship for a late and well deserved breakfast, our Captain repositioned the ship towards the south until we reached the Iguana Island Wildlife Preserve. This island provided us with our first snorkeling site of the trip. But not only did we swim, snorkel and beach comb, we could take a quick hike across the island towards a frigatebird colony where we could be so close to the birds we could hear the clicking noises that the excited males make when sitting on the nests. With white sand and dark rocks this haven for hermit crabs and magnificent frigatebirds was the perfect ending to an overall fantastic day.
After a very calm night’s sleep, we woke up today inside the Gulf of Panama anchored on the lee side of Otoque Island. Otoque, Bona and Estiva Islands are three islets that are only 25 miles off of the Pacific entrance to the Panama Canal and offer a fantastic chance for marine bird watching. The tall ledges of the rocky islets provide a perfect nesting site for two species of boobies and the tall trees provide sites for magnificent frigatebirds and brown pelicans. This morning we took a cruise on our faithful Zodiacs around this bird haven. What a pleasure!! All the birds were going around their business which included preening, feeding, kleptoparasitizing , tending to the chicks, courting, nest-building, and more. It is such an amazing feeling when one is able to share a moment in nature as the animals allow us into their realm.
Back to the ship for a late and well deserved breakfast, our Captain repositioned the ship towards the south until we reached the Iguana Island Wildlife Preserve. This island provided us with our first snorkeling site of the trip. But not only did we swim, snorkel and beach comb, we could take a quick hike across the island towards a frigatebird colony where we could be so close to the birds we could hear the clicking noises that the excited males make when sitting on the nests. With white sand and dark rocks this haven for hermit crabs and magnificent frigatebirds was the perfect ending to an overall fantastic day.
