This morning we landed on North Seymour Island, for our first hike of the day. Just a few feet into our walk, we found a land iguana under a cordia lutea tree, and just next to it on another muyuyo shrub, two endemic swallow-tailed gulls were spotted, sitting on the ground on top of an accumulation of pebbles that they have collected to make a perfect little nest. Up in the air, we could see frigates gliding along the coastline, some males with a partially inflated red pouches passed by, followed by juveniles and females.
In the distance, we saw a group of male frigatebirds with their pouches inflated, making different sounds and flapping their wings to get the attention of the females flying overhead. One of the males appeared to have attracted a beautiful female, who was carefully inspecting the quality of the nest that the male had created.
More iguanas waited in the shade of the opuntia cacti, likely hoping that the fruits of the pads would fall on top of them. The cacti here are their only source of water. One walked by right in front of us and decided to rest under the cactus next to the trail. As the morning grew hotter, the reptiles could be observed looking for any shaded area with a little bit of breeze, a good place to rest.
As we continued our walk, blue-footed boobies waited for us in the middle of the trail. A male stopped and pointed his bill upward, hoping to be seen by a female that was flying right above him; she understood his move and landed right next to his side, and as she approached him, he started whistling… definitively courting, as is typical at the time of the year.
Rabida Island was the location of our afternoon outings, a perfect place to try out the snorkeling gear and to swim in the water of this islands for the first time. We had a great time swimming off of the beach of Rabida, and our guests could see that the waters that surround this archipelago have lots of marine life. It will be a wonderful environment to explore throughout this week.
