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See this triplist in printable PDF format with media only on page 1.
The ubiquitous
Blue-footed Booby is kind of the mascot of the Galapagos
islands, enchanting visitors, be they bird watchers or not.
In the islands, everybody loves boobies. (Photo by guide
George Armistead)
The Galapagos islands are a dream destination for every nature enthusiast, and we got to see first-hand why the enchanted isles are unique and so alluring, especially for birders. We arrived on Baltra and quickly made our way to the lovely Nemo II, and after settling in and meeting the friendly crew, we were off! Our first visit found us circling legendary Daphne Major, and we were extremely pleased to see a handful of Galapagos Martins working the top of the island for bugs. At North Seymour we were overrun with land iguanas, seeing about 20 of them, as we also side-stepped nesting frigatebirds and Blue-footed Boobies, and took note of our first Galapagos Doves. We sailed overnight for Floreana, where we had a nice hike amid the pirate caves, and tallied our only Medium Tree-Finches of the trip, before loading up and heading to the other side of the island. At Champion-by-Floreana we found a most confiding family of critically endangered Floreana Mockingbirds.
That night we headed west for the Bolivar Channel, beginning the following day by walking the lava fields at Punta Moreno, tallying more great sightings of martins, enjoying lengthy studies of some very close flamingos and White-cheeked Pintails, and also noting all three types of cacti. A stop at Urbina Bay was nice, yielding great views of Vegetarian Finch and a couple of the highly endangered Galapagos Vermilion ("Brujo") Flycatchers. We spent that night in the comfortable confines of Tagus Cove, enjoying a nice hike there in the morning, before heading across the Bolivar Channel to Punta Espinosa on Fernandina. We saw some nice big aggregations of Marine Iguanas there, as well as some tidal pools teeming with fish and other wildlife, along with some shorebirds, then it was time to head north around Isabela. We crossed the equator twice that night, seeing a couple of whales just before dusk, including both Bryde's and Fin (but no "white whale", sorry Tim!).
The next day we were back at Santa Cruz, visiting Dragon Hills where we had one of our few Great Blue Herons (an endemic subspecies), and then we headed on to Espanola island. We spent a magical morning at Punta Suarez amid soaring and sailing Waved Albatrosses, and also got to watch mated pairs displaying and nuzzling with their youngsters. All of that would have been spectacular enough, but to have the majestic gooneybirds set against a backdrop filled with displaying tropicbirds, with skeins of boobies gliding past, and handsome Swallow-tailed Gulls bowing and clicking, the scene was simply stunning. A magical place.
Next we stopped in briefly at San Cristobal, long enough to get good views of the endemic mockingbird and also the endemic forms of Green Warbler-Finch and Woodpecker Finch, before we set sail for Tower (Genovesa). Perhaps as marvelous as Espanola, we were overwhelmed by the dizzying volumes of Wedge-rumped Storm-Petrels at the colony on Tower, and also staggered at sightings of Red-footed Boobies, both frigatebirds, Large Cactus-Finch, Large Ground-Finch and Sharp-beaked Ground-Finch. After a final dip in the water, we headed back to Santa Cruz. It was tough bidding adieu to the Nemo II and its fabulous crew (boy, did they take good care of us), but we were all pleased to be back on dry land; and after all we still had a few key target birds to see! Happily we struck gold with each, netting excellent views of the Galapagos Rail and the Large Tree-Finch before drinking in stupendous views of the Paint-billed Crake.
All in all, it was a pretty good haul. Thanks so much to all of you for making this trip such a supreme pleasure to guide. Peter and I really enjoyed traveling with you and we hope to see you out in the field again soon. Very best,
--George
For more information about this tour, including future departures, visit our website at www.fieldguides.com. And to see this same triplist online, go to https://fieldguides.com/triplists/gal12cLIST.pdf and you will find the list in its entirety.
KEYS FOR THIS LIST
One of the following keys may be shown in brackets for
individual species as appropriate: * = heard only, I =
introduced, E = endemic, N = nesting, a = austral migrant, b =
boreal migrant
BIRDS
While many of the
island's birds are rather subdued in terms of color, the
American Flamingos here are anything but; the ones found
here are the pinkest of all. (Photo by guide George
Armistead)
Though not an
endemic species, Paint-billed Crakes are probably easier
to see in the Galapagos than anywhere else in their
extensive South American range. (Photo by guide George
Armistead)
Getting up close
and personal with spectacular Waved Albatrosses on
Espanola is easily one of the highlights of a visit to the
islands. (Photo by guide George Armistead)
A hooked bill
seems a risky thing to have next to a fully inflated chest
pouch, but this displaying male Magnificent Frigatebird
seems unfazed by the danger. (Photo by guide George
Armistead)
It's large, it's
in a tree, must be a Large Tree-Finch! Given the
similarity between many of the Darwin finches, it's
understandable that some folks think this is really how we
identify these birds! It's not though. (Photo by guide
George Armistead)
MAMMALS
ADDITIONAL COMMENTS
Totals for the tour: 68 bird taxa and 6 mammal taxa