20th and 21st May - N. Seymour & Genovesa
20th May - North Seymour
We landed here after first joining our boat at Baltra. North Seymour is a small island just north of Baltra and the neighbouring main island of Santa Cruz. Being a small island, North Seymour is a good place to get an initial first flavour of the Galapagos. The trail wound its way through a relatively flat area by the coast and we were soon wandering cheek by jowl with bushes full of Great- and Magnificent Frigatebirds, many of the males with their bright red throat sacs fully inflated. Separation of the males of these two species is rather dependent on the light but the general rule is that if the metallic sheen on the mantle feathers is green then it is a [G}reat whereas if there is blue in there as well [makes it look purplish] and it is therefore {M}ixed then it is a Magnificent. Magnificent are larger than Greats and in flight adult Greats usually have a pale brownish bar across the upperwing. The females are easier as the fem Great has a red eye-ring whereas the fem Magnificent has a blue eye-ring. There were also plenty of ground-nesting Blue-footed Boobies on display. Galapagos Sea Lions lounged right next to the paths, and we had our first fabulous views of the elegant endemic Swallow-tailed Gull. Land Iguanas were also very photogenic. We also encountered our first Darwin's finches, in the shape of Small Ground Finches, small brownish sparrow-like birds - indeed all of Mr. Darwin's finches are small-ish and brown, ranging through to black in full adults, and with various sized and shaped bills. Ernesto also started to introduce us to some of the unusual endemic plants of the islands. It was dusk by the time we had circled back to the landing point, where we boarded the pangas and returned to the TipTop IV for dinner and the evening de-brief, checklist and briefing for the following day. The differences between the finches are in some cases quite subtle, so we thoroughly enjoyed our evening 'classroom' sessions with Andy, when he would take us through the finer points of the species we had seen that day and those that we were likely to see the following day!.The gallery of images below is mainly of scenery and other non-avian highlights although there might be some bird photos where they were particularly pertinent to the day's visit. The main galleries of bird and animal images are on a separate page via the main menu tabs at the top. This is mainly because many of the birds & animals were seen on all islands. This applies to each day's summary. With all images, click on the first for a larger version then you can move through them using mouse or L>R arrow keys.
We landed here after first joining our boat at Baltra. North Seymour is a small island just north of Baltra and the neighbouring main island of Santa Cruz. Being a small island, North Seymour is a good place to get an initial first flavour of the Galapagos. The trail wound its way through a relatively flat area by the coast and we were soon wandering cheek by jowl with bushes full of Great- and Magnificent Frigatebirds, many of the males with their bright red throat sacs fully inflated. Separation of the males of these two species is rather dependent on the light but the general rule is that if the metallic sheen on the mantle feathers is green then it is a [G}reat whereas if there is blue in there as well [makes it look purplish] and it is therefore {M}ixed then it is a Magnificent. Magnificent are larger than Greats and in flight adult Greats usually have a pale brownish bar across the upperwing. The females are easier as the fem Great has a red eye-ring whereas the fem Magnificent has a blue eye-ring. There were also plenty of ground-nesting Blue-footed Boobies on display. Galapagos Sea Lions lounged right next to the paths, and we had our first fabulous views of the elegant endemic Swallow-tailed Gull. Land Iguanas were also very photogenic. We also encountered our first Darwin's finches, in the shape of Small Ground Finches, small brownish sparrow-like birds - indeed all of Mr. Darwin's finches are small-ish and brown, ranging through to black in full adults, and with various sized and shaped bills. Ernesto also started to introduce us to some of the unusual endemic plants of the islands. It was dusk by the time we had circled back to the landing point, where we boarded the pangas and returned to the TipTop IV for dinner and the evening de-brief, checklist and briefing for the following day. The differences between the finches are in some cases quite subtle, so we thoroughly enjoyed our evening 'classroom' sessions with Andy, when he would take us through the finer points of the species we had seen that day and those that we were likely to see the following day!.The gallery of images below is mainly of scenery and other non-avian highlights although there might be some bird photos where they were particularly pertinent to the day's visit. The main galleries of bird and animal images are on a separate page via the main menu tabs at the top. This is mainly because many of the birds & animals were seen on all islands. This applies to each day's summary. With all images, click on the first for a larger version then you can move through them using mouse or L>R arrow keys.
21st May - Genovesa
Genovesa is the most northerly island visited and we transferred to the mooring offshore overnight, crossing from the southern hemisphere to the northern hemisphere during the process. The sea was amazingly calm. Hence we awoke for an early breakfast [something like 6 a.m.!], with a view of the island. Throughout the cruise, breakfast was always this early so that we could be first onshore. The island visits are closely controlled by the Park authority, so that each boat has a visit time-slot which they must adhere to or suffer penalty points. Breakfast was always a very pleasant affair with a bottomless coffee urn, fresh fruit, cereals, bacon, sausages, various cold meats and cheese, bread etc. The first landing on Genovesa was a wet landing on a white sand beach called Playa Darwin. Here we walked an easy trail, one highlight being a Lava Gull sitting on the beach where we landed. These are endemic and there are only about 300-600 individuals [2015] so it is the rarest gull in the world. We also had superb views of Swallow-tailed Gull. We eventually paused at a low cliff and watched a group of 6 White-tipped Reef Sharks feeding in the crystal clear shallows. Afterwards we had a Panga ride along the cliffs and were treated to excellent views of Red-billed Tropicbirds on their nest ledges. The next landing on Genovesa was a dry landing, as was the previous day's on North Seymour. This landing is at the so-called Prince Phillip's Steps, a series of fairly steep steps in the rock, taking you up onto a foreshore plateau overlooking the sea [Ernesto and a crew member are awaiting us in the photo above]. These were so-named after a visit by Prince Phillip on the RY Britannica in 1965. The trail took us past nesting Nazca Boobies and though a forest of low endemic Palo Santo trees with nesting Red-footed Boobies, to a huge foreshore area of red, rather hollow lava, where we were amazed by the hundreds of Wedge-rumped Storm-petrels [Oceanodroma tethys] which nest in holes in the lava. The air was literally full of these tiny birds. They are sometimes referred to as Galapagos Storm-petrels. It was unusual for those of us from the UK, to see these birds flying around in broad daylight, as in the UK at least, we are accustomed to only being able to see European Storm-petrels when they return to the burrows at night. However, even at this location on Genovesa, there is another species which comes in at night and that is the Band-rumped, or Madeiran Storm-petrel [Oceanodroma castro]. One of the photos in the gallery below attempts to show the clouds of birds. The Wedge-rumped birds are running the risk of being taken by the Galapagos sub-species of Short-eared Owl [Asio flammeus galapagoensis]. We were eventually rewarded with excellent views of 7 of these diurnal owls, including one a few feet away with an unfortunate Petrel in its talons - see photo in the gallery below. Other birds encountered in our walk were the pretty Galapagos Dove, and Large Ground Finch, whose bill makes that of our Hawfinch look rather feeble! We also saw many Sharp-beaked Ground Finches, some Green [or Olive] Warbler Finches, and around 10 Large Cactus Finches. The other numerous bird here was Mangrove Warbler. There were 100's feeding on flies, over the coastal lava - these resemble very closely, the Yellow Warblers one sees in the USA, but it is a separate species which has a huge number of sub-species, of which the one in Galapagos [Setophaga petechia aureola] is near-endemic [they also occur in the Cocos Islands]. We also encountered Lava Gull again.
Genovesa is the most northerly island visited and we transferred to the mooring offshore overnight, crossing from the southern hemisphere to the northern hemisphere during the process. The sea was amazingly calm. Hence we awoke for an early breakfast [something like 6 a.m.!], with a view of the island. Throughout the cruise, breakfast was always this early so that we could be first onshore. The island visits are closely controlled by the Park authority, so that each boat has a visit time-slot which they must adhere to or suffer penalty points. Breakfast was always a very pleasant affair with a bottomless coffee urn, fresh fruit, cereals, bacon, sausages, various cold meats and cheese, bread etc. The first landing on Genovesa was a wet landing on a white sand beach called Playa Darwin. Here we walked an easy trail, one highlight being a Lava Gull sitting on the beach where we landed. These are endemic and there are only about 300-600 individuals [2015] so it is the rarest gull in the world. We also had superb views of Swallow-tailed Gull. We eventually paused at a low cliff and watched a group of 6 White-tipped Reef Sharks feeding in the crystal clear shallows. Afterwards we had a Panga ride along the cliffs and were treated to excellent views of Red-billed Tropicbirds on their nest ledges. The next landing on Genovesa was a dry landing, as was the previous day's on North Seymour. This landing is at the so-called Prince Phillip's Steps, a series of fairly steep steps in the rock, taking you up onto a foreshore plateau overlooking the sea [Ernesto and a crew member are awaiting us in the photo above]. These were so-named after a visit by Prince Phillip on the RY Britannica in 1965. The trail took us past nesting Nazca Boobies and though a forest of low endemic Palo Santo trees with nesting Red-footed Boobies, to a huge foreshore area of red, rather hollow lava, where we were amazed by the hundreds of Wedge-rumped Storm-petrels [Oceanodroma tethys] which nest in holes in the lava. The air was literally full of these tiny birds. They are sometimes referred to as Galapagos Storm-petrels. It was unusual for those of us from the UK, to see these birds flying around in broad daylight, as in the UK at least, we are accustomed to only being able to see European Storm-petrels when they return to the burrows at night. However, even at this location on Genovesa, there is another species which comes in at night and that is the Band-rumped, or Madeiran Storm-petrel [Oceanodroma castro]. One of the photos in the gallery below attempts to show the clouds of birds. The Wedge-rumped birds are running the risk of being taken by the Galapagos sub-species of Short-eared Owl [Asio flammeus galapagoensis]. We were eventually rewarded with excellent views of 7 of these diurnal owls, including one a few feet away with an unfortunate Petrel in its talons - see photo in the gallery below. Other birds encountered in our walk were the pretty Galapagos Dove, and Large Ground Finch, whose bill makes that of our Hawfinch look rather feeble! We also saw many Sharp-beaked Ground Finches, some Green [or Olive] Warbler Finches, and around 10 Large Cactus Finches. The other numerous bird here was Mangrove Warbler. There were 100's feeding on flies, over the coastal lava - these resemble very closely, the Yellow Warblers one sees in the USA, but it is a separate species which has a huge number of sub-species, of which the one in Galapagos [Setophaga petechia aureola] is near-endemic [they also occur in the Cocos Islands]. We also encountered Lava Gull again.