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Galapagos Cruise Review: Polaris

Thursday, July 29, 2004

Genovesa Island

It goes without saying that the Galápagos Islands are a birdwatcher’s paradise, but today’s expedition to Genovesa exceeded all expectations and seemed more like we were within an unfolding nature documentary. After anchoring in Darwin Bay, a deep harbour that is actually the crater of a collapsed volcanic caldera, we took a short panga ride to the shore where our walk began. We immediately found ourselves within the breeding rookeries of several species of seabirds, some were building nests and courting mates, some were sitting on eggs in primitive nests that seemed to be little more than a pile of pebbles or sticks, and some were feeding downy chicks. While we approached these birds carefully, they showed no fear of us, and we could see the wonder of life that teems on these islands. 

Beautiful swallow-tailed gulls were sitting under bushes atop pebbles brought by the males and carefully arranged by the females, and on these bushes were the wobbly yet surprisingly durable nests of great frigatebirds. These frigatebirds were rearing the last of this season’s birds, and juveniles from earlier in the season were in full plumage with stunning white heads to distinguish themselves from their showy black parents. After learning how to fly, these young frigatebirds were perfecting their kleptoparasitic behaviour by chasing the gulls and boobies and attempting to steal their catch of fish and squid. A nice surprise, were the red footed boobies, both the brown and rarer white phase plumages, nesting in the dense and vibrant mangrove trees. Many were still rearing their chicks (see photo), which looked less like their colourful parents and more like cotton-covered pterodactyls, yet these were still cute in their own way. A scan of the rocky shoreline showed the group ruddy turnstones, short-billed dowitchers, and yellow-crowned night herons. 

In the afternoon the sun broke through the seasonal haze to present a fantastic golden light that set the stark lava rocks ablaze. We set out for a cliffside rookery of storm petrels that were flying in huge numbers around the rocky crags that housed their nests. Waiting for them were short-eared owls, their natural predator that hunted them during the day. Perfectly camouflaged with a plumage that matched the rocky lava, these owls presented a challenge for the birdwatchers in the group, and three were spotted by sharp-eyed members of group. Along the way back, we passed through a breeding colony of Nazca Boobies, several lava gulls, small flocks of Galápagos doves, many curious Galápagos mockingbirds, a few of the amazing ‘vampire finches’, and small groups of jet-black marine iguanas. As we sailed back to the Polaris along the cliffs of Genovesa, we saw red-billed tropicbirds flying into their nests in the crevices, and both Galápagos sea lions and Galápagos fur seals resting on the rocks below. The birdwatchers were happy, the photographers were ecstatic, and the look of wonder and discovery on the faces of the children made this day all worthwhile. Waiting for us on our return were sunset drinks on the teak deck of the Polaris, and the crew held a fantastic barbecue in the warm evening of the Galápagos summer. Few days could ever be better than this. 

Author: Douglas J. Long, California Academy of Sciences; Photo: Rafael Pesantes, Naturalist