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Galapagos Islands Photo Gallery - Day 3 Espanola Punta Suarez and Gardner Bay

In August 2007 we traveled to Quito, Ecuador, Cotopaxi and Chimborazo, and the Galapagos Islands

Galapagos 3-1-01 Espanola Punta Suarez Espanola, also known as Hood, is one of the smaller Galapagos Islands measuring 7 by 14 km, and reaching an elevation of just over 200m. It is the oldest and the southernmost island in the chain and a haven for seabirds. The Eden docked at Punta Suarez on the western tip of Espanola.

Galapagos 3-1-01 Espanola Punta Suarez

Galapagos 3-1-02 Espanola Punta Suarez Dry Landing Punta Suarez was a dry landing which meant that we could find a natural outcropping of rock to use as a dock and get off with our footwear on. We then followed the 2km trail.

Galapagos 3-1-02 Espanola Punta Suarez Dry Landing

Galapagos 3-1-03 Espanola Punta Suarez Marine Iguanas Normally marine iguanas are dark in color, a camouflage making it difficult for predators to differentiate between the iguanas and the lava rocks where they live. On Espanola the marine iguanas are more colourful, ranging from pink and turquoise to red and green.

Galapagos 3-1-03 Espanola Punta Suarez Marine Iguanas

Galapagos 3-1-04 Espanola Punta Suarez Marine Iguanas Close Up Here is a close up of two colourful Espanola marine iguanas.

Galapagos 3-1-04 Espanola Punta Suarez Marine Iguanas Close Up

Galapagos 3-1-05 Espanola Punta Suarez Lava Lizard Endemic to the Galapagos, the colourful lava lizard is a fairly small reptile measuring only about 30cm long. The female has the red colour under her chin. The males are more speckled and bigger. This one is a female.

Galapagos 3-1-05 Espanola Punta Suarez Lava Lizard

Galapagos 3-1-06 Espanola Punta Suarez Swallow-tailed Gulls Swallow-tailed gulls are endemic to the Galapagos, and are supposedly the only nocturnal gull in the world. Here is a swallow-tailed gull coming in for a landing on Espanola.

Galapagos 3-1-06 Espanola Punta Suarez Swallow-tailed Gulls

Galapagos 3-1-07 Espanola Punta Suarez Sally Lightfoot Crab The Sally Lightfoot crabs are abundant on the lava rocks along the water's edge.

Galapagos 3-1-07 Espanola Punta Suarez Sally Lightfoot Crab

Galapagos 3-1-08 Espanola Punta Suarez Hood Mockingbird The Hood mockingbird is one of the four species of mockingbird in Galapagos. Mockingbirds are quite unafraid of people and very curious and will even land on a visitor's head or water bottle, always looking for food or drink. Here is a Hood mockingbird perched in the waist-high saltbrush bushes.

Galapagos 3-1-08 Espanola Punta Suarez Hood Mockingbird

Galapagos 3-1-09 Espanola Punta Suarez Nazca Masked Boobies Espanola has many Nazca, or masked, boobies. The masked booby has a long, stout neck and a strong, cone-shaped bill. Its plumage is mostly white, but its beak and surrounding skin are dark and brightly coloured.

Galapagos 3-1-09 Espanola Punta Suarez Nazca Masked Boobies

Galapagos 3-1-10 Espanola Punta Suarez Nazca Masked Booby Close Up Here is a close up of the Nazca, or masked, booby.

Galapagos 3-1-10 Espanola Punta Suarez Nazca Masked Booby Close Up

Galapagos 3-1-11 Espanola Punta Suarez Blue-footed Booby Feeding Baby We also came across blue-footed boobies on Espanola. Here is one regurgitating to feed their baby.

Galapagos 3-1-11 Espanola Punta Suarez Blue-footed Booby Feeding Baby

Galapagos 3-1-12 Espanola Punta Suarez Look - A Lava Lizard “Hey, look, there’s another lava lizard.”

Galapagos 3-1-12 Espanola Punta Suarez Look - A Lava Lizard

Galapagos 3-1-13 Espanola Punta Suarez Blowhole The blowhole is pretty spectacular next to the jagged cliffs of Espanola. The waves crash on the cliffs flowing through a lava tube, and then up and out in a blast of water like a geyser 15-30m into the air.

Galapagos 3-1-13 Espanola Punta Suarez Blowhole

Galapagos 3-1-14 Espanola Punta Suarez Waved Albatross The highlight of Espanola is the colony of waved albatrosses, magnificent birds of enormous wing span, which breed exclusively on Espanola. It has brown upper parts and wings with gray, waved bars (hence its name), a white neck, a cream-colored nape, and a handsome yellow beak. Some 12,000 monogamous pairs nest on Espanola each year. With a wingspan of over 2m and a weight of 3-4kg, the waved albatross is the largest Galapagos bird. On land they walk with a waddle and appear to be very clumsy, but in the air, they are among the most graceful of sea birds. They are found on only one island, Espanola.

Galapagos 3-1-14 Espanola Punta Suarez Waved Albatross

Galapagos 3-1-15 Espanola Punta Suarez Waved Albatrosses Mating Dance We were lucky enough to come upon pairs of male and female waved albatrosses doing their mating dance. The pair dance with each other in an awkward waddle, move their necks up and down in rhythm, clack and encircle their bills, and raise their bills skyward. Hi-larious.

Galapagos 3-1-15 Espanola Punta Suarez Waved Albatrosses Mating Dance

Galapagos 3-1-16 Espanola Punta Suarez Cliffs The albatross is so large that it needs the powerful southeast trades that sweep up the cliffs of Espanola to get them airborne.

Galapagos 3-1-16 Espanola Punta Suarez Cliffs

Galapagos 3-1-17 Espanola Punta Suarez Galapagos Hawk and Baby Johnny spotted an endemic Galapagos hawk nesting in the distance with a chick. There are currently believed to be no more than 150 mating pairs in existence. The adult Galapagos Hawk is generally a sooty brownish black colour; the crown being slightly blacker than the back.

Galapagos 3-1-17 Espanola Punta Suarez Galapagos Hawk and Baby

Galapagos 3-1-18 Espanola Punta Suarez Eden When we got back to the dock area, we boarded the Eden. The cruise from Punta Suarez to Gardner Bay on the northeastern part of Espanola only takes about half an hour we stopped among the sea lions.

Galapagos 3-1-18 Espanola Punta Suarez Eden

Galapagos 3-2-01 Espanola Gardner Bay Male Sea Lion Patroling Beach Gardner Bay is a wet landing onto a long white beach. The beach is an open area where we were free to wander, walk along the beach, go swimming, or do some snorkeling. A male sea lion patrolled the beach against other males, with the boats bobbing in the distance.

Galapagos 3-2-01 Espanola Gardner Bay Male Sea Lion Patroling Beach

Galapagos 3-2-02 Espanola Gardner Bay Admiring Sea Lions Here we are admiring a sea lion on the beach at Gardner Bay.

Galapagos 3-2-02 Espanola Gardner Bay Admiring Sea Lions

Galapagos 3-2-03 Espanola Gardner Bay Marine Iguana A marine iguana remains submerged in the cold water for 5-10 minutes to feed. Being cold-blooded, iguanas spend much of their time restoring body heat by sunning themselves on the rocks adjacent the shore.

Galapagos 3-2-03 Espanola Gardner Bay Marine Iguana

Galapagos 3-2-04 Espanola Gardner Bay Darwin Finch We saw a Darwin finch at Gardner Bay. There are 13 distinct species of finch found throughout the Galapagos Islands, with each species inhabiting its own niche. Charles Darwin's observations of the finches' different bill shapes and related eating habits helped lead to his revolutionary theories about natural selection. All of the Galapagos finches are relatively small and sparrow-like.

Galapagos 3-2-04 Espanola Gardner Bay Darwin Finch

Galapagos 3-2-05 Espanola Gardner Bay Beach Here is a view of the sweeping beach at Gardner Bay, where the turquoise colored water makes a beautiful contrast to the white sand that consists of shell dust.

Galapagos 3-2-05 Espanola Gardner Bay Beach

Galapagos 3-2-06 Espanola Gardner Bay Swimming With the Sea Lions The boys went for a swim at Gardner Bay, and didn’t even notice a fellow swimmer.

Galapagos 3-2-06 Espanola Gardner Bay Swimming With the Sea Lions


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