Galapagos Islands: Part 1

A penguin on Island Rabida

Hola again, amigos. James, Jordan, and I have just arrived back to civilization in Puerto Ayora, the largest town in the Galapagos Islands. The blogs have been quiet lately because we have been cruising around the islands for the last 8 days (without internet) on a boat called the Yolita II.

After we left Banos last week, we bussed it back to Quito to catch our flight to the Galapagos Islands where we immediately booked a last minute cruise around the islands. The tour was jam-packed every day with activities, and we saw a ton of neat things – both on the islands and in the ocean with snorkels. Because there’s so much to talk about, I’m splitting this post into two parts: Part 1, with the wildlife we saw on land, and Part 2 with everything underwater.

The Land

What makes the Galapagos Islands so unique is the way in which the islands were formed. Similar to Hawaii, they are volcanic islands that formed out in the Pacific Ocean. What’s really interesting, however, is that the islands were never connected by land to the rest of earth. Therefore, the only way that life could arrive on the island is by floating there on the sea or blowing in the wind. The life that did arrive on Galapagos has evolved for hundreds of thousands, even millions of years, without coming into contact with humans or any other mammals. What this all means, is that the animals on the Galapagos Islands have no fear of humans at all, and you can get really close without alarming them.

When we first arrived in Puerto Ayora last week, we saw strange sights like huge pelicans standing next to people on the pier, and a sea lion laying on the sidewalk right in the town.

Jordan, our Norwegian friend Nicholai, James, and Sleepy Sea Lion

Everyday during the cruise, we went on land excursions looking for wildlife. Our guide took us to all the good spots, and was amazing at imitating animal noises; which came in handy when, for example, he wanted to get two blue footed boobies to start dancing. Blue footed boobies do the “boobie two-step” which is a ritual they do before they mate. Another interesting thing about Blue Footed Boobies is that to catch fish, flocks of boobies all dive bomb the water at the same time like kamikazes.

Me with a Blue Footed Boobie

The islands also have lots of iguanas, which come in two species: land and marine. The marine iguanas are black and a little bit smaller, but have long tails that are adapted for swimming. The land iguanas are bigger and more colourful. They can live to be 120 years old!

Tortoises are probably the coolest land animal on the islands. There are 11 different species, and some of them are really huge. On the first day of the cruise we went on a walk in a field of tortoises, and learned that when people arrived on the islands about 500 years ago they used to bring the huge tortoises with them on their boats. They would eat the tortoise meat and use the oil for light and heating. Now, the tortoise numbers are dwindling so there are rehabilitation programs in place to bring their numbers back up.

Jordan getting ready to race a tortoise. James is acting as referee

We’ve also seen a ton of exotic birds that are unique to Galapagos. I watched male Frigate birds inflate their huge red “balloon” that they use to attract females, I saw huge albatross take flight from the edge of cliffs, was chased by Mockingbirds in the sand, and watched Pelicans scoop fish out of the sea. But definitely the most amazing thing I saw was Jordan pulling a sweet backflip off the top deck of the Yolita II!

Jordan taking a leap of faith from 7 meters

I’m currently getting chirped by James and Jordan for not starting my PADI reading. Jordan and I just signed up for a scuba diving course so that we can get certified, and Jordan’s already way ahead of me in the homework. So I must make haste. Stay tuned for Part 2 coming soon.