Galapagos Tortoise
The Galápagos tortoise or Galápagos giant tortoise is the largest living species of tortoise and 13th-heaviest living reptile, reaching weights of over 400 kg (880 lb) and lengths of over 1.8 meters (5.9 ft). With life spans in the wild of over 100 years, it is one of the longest-lived vertebrates.
Galapagos Birds – Blue-footed Booby
The blue-footed booby is easily recognizable by its distinctive bright blue feet, which is a sexually selected trait. Males display their feet in an elaborate mating ritual by lifting their feet up and down while strutting before the female.
The name booby comes from the Spanish word bobo (‘stupid’, ‘fool’, or ‘clown’) because the Blue-footed Booby is, like other seabirds, clumsy on land. They are also regarded as foolish for their apparent fearlessness of humans.
Galapagos Birds – Blue-footed Booby Baby
The Blue-footed Booby is a marine bird in the family Sulidae, which includes ten species of long-winged seabirds. First studied extensively by Charles Darwin, it belongs to the genus Sula, which comprises six species of boobies.
Galapagos Birds – A Booby Baby Chick
A slightly older version of a booby bird – not yet fully developed
Galapagos Birds – A Fluffy Baby Chick
A newly born baby looks so fluffy – almost like a ball of cotton
Galapagos Birds – Short-eared Owl
The Short-eared owl (Asio flammeus) is wide-spread and more common in the archipelago, and more frequently seen — especially in the seabird colonies of Genovesa island. It hunts by day as well as night, its diet overlapping that of the Galápagos hawk and barn owl though their feeding times usually differ.
Here is a shot from far, but zoomed in and enlarged to reveal the unique colors and piercing eyes.
Galapagos Birds – Frigatebird Baby Reaching Inside
Captured a marvel of nature – a baby feeding from a mother in a unique way
Galapagos Birds – Greater Flamingos
The beautiful landscape of Galapagos is graced by Greater Flamingos
Galapagos Birds – Frigatebird Baby Reaching In
What’s inside your mouth, mom? A zoomed-in shot of a Frigatebird chick exploring the mother’s mouth for food
Galapagos Birds – Galapagos (Lava) Heron
The Lava Heron, also known as the Galapagos Heron, is a species of heron endemic to the Galapagos Islands. The adult is slate-grey, which helps it blend in with the hardened lava. The back feathers typically have a silvery sheen and it has a short crest on its head.
Galapagos Birds – Mockingbird
The Galápagos Mockingbird is easily spotted due to its feathers which are streaked brown and gray, long tail, and smaller size, and black, angled beak. The bird has a darker color than other mockingbirds on the islands causing it to blend in with the coral sand of the islands that it mainly inhabits.
Galapagos Birds – Frigatebird Baby Reaching In Sideways
No, the mother is not about to swallow the baby. It is the baby that is reaching in to feed from the mother’s catch!
Galapagos Birds – Frigatebird Baby Reaching Out
A baby chick reaches out to the mother – why?
Galapagos Birds – Frigatebird Baby Reaching Out Deep
To feed, of course!
Galapagos Birds – Frigatebird Baby Chick
A cute and fluffy baby frigatebird
Galapagos Birds – A Baby Frigatebird
It almost appears that this frigatebird is sitting on its wings
Galapagos Birds – Frigatebird Protecting the Nest
Female frigatebirds are black, but have a white breast and lower neck sides, a brown band on the wings, and a blue eye-ring that is diagnostic of the female of the species.
Galapagos Birds – Frigatebird Spreading Its Wings
The Magnificent Frigatebird is 100 cm (39 in) long with a 215 cm (85 in) wingspan.
Galapagos Birds – Swallow-tailed Gull in Flight
The grace of the gull captured in flight
Galapagos Sea Lions – A Little Disagreement
Not only are sea lions social, they are also quite vocal. Adult males often bark in long, loud and distinctive repeated sequences. Females and juveniles do not produce this repetitive bark, but the younger pups will growl. A little growling going on here …
Galapagos Sea Lions – Motherly Love
The static and social interaction between mother-offspring pairs is a central social unit in most mammalian groups, as well as these sea lions. The cow will nurture a pup for up to three years. In that time, the cow and the pup will recognize each other’s bark from the rest of the colony.