MIA isn’t a bad place to hang out for a few hours. \240It’s a bright airport with lots of art, shops, and restaurants.

Birds filled the trees- Green Pacific Parrots, blue ones, hummingbirds, yellow and black ones...

Malecon 2000 is the river walk. It is filled with rides and play spaces for kids, shops, restaurants and picture ops. It was a great place to spend the afternoon and we even saw some shore birds.

Juan Pueblo was a character used to fight malnutrition.

We hung out with some iguanas and toured a 400 year old neighborhood.

New Years Eve is a big deal here. There have been random fireworks going off since we arrived. \240One tradition that is interesting is that people buy effigies called año viejo which are cartoons, superhero’s, or local politicians. They display them on the street or drive around with them. At midnight they will start them in fire and of course they are filled with fireworks.

Feliz año nuevo - Happy New Year

Other traditions of Guayaquil, include the año viejo, the new olds. \240We walked through the local contest at the Malecón. \240They were quite impressive.

Another tradition- men dressed up like ladies, ”widows”, begging for beer money. All is good fun.

We rang in the New Year with the extended family of our B&B owners at Nazu House. \240Dinner was simple but delicious at around 10:30. Wine while watching the fireworks, champagne at midnight. \240We got hugs and kisses from everyone and watched as the ano viejo would not burn. \240We also ate 12 grapes for good luck and watched some folks walk up and down the street with suitcases. \240

We were lulled to sleep by a booming base beat as the family continued their party. \240All was quiet from about 5 until we were welcomed into 2019 by our flock of rather noisy parakeets. \240Life is good.

The ceviche was delicious so we tried another dish. Other diners were eating from a steaming clay bowl. It looked interesting. So we ordered Cazuela mixta.

We squeezed a couple limes (lemons) over it and dug in. Wow. It was fabulous. \240It’s a mixture of mashed plantains and peanuts that are first cooked in the stove and then places in a clay bowl. This is baked to form a crust on top. It’s then topped with fish and shrimp as well as cilantro. We had it with rice. \240It was amazing.

What a great experience with even looking for one!

We visited the Charles Darwin Research Center. \240Opened in 1064, the center works to conserve the biodiversity of the Galapagos. With over 100 scientists, educators, and volunteers they research the giant tortoises, marine iguanas, Darwin finches, and local fauna. 75% of the workers are Ecuadorian.

In 1970, giant tortoises were thought to be extinct on Pinta Island. The one day a scientist found George. They soon moved him to the research center. \240 There, Fausito Lierana, took care of him for over 40 years. Many unsuccessful attempts were made to breed him.

George became famous as a symbol for conservation. The feral goats had eaten all the vegetation resulting in tortoises having no food. \240Lonesome George died in 2012 at 102 years old. \240He was lovingly and expertly “stuffed” and finally returned to the research center in 2017 to continue his conservation efforts.

The cactus tree, opuntia cactus, is native to Santa Cruz Island. It grows to 12 meters tall and is 1 of 6 prickly pear cacti on the island.

Turtles and iguanas love it because it’s trunk is filled with sponge and water. The leaves are so high to survive their reach. \240It flowers only after the ripe old age of 15

Here are some of the research tortoises- babies to big.

Climate change is a huge concern here and scientists have already observed marine iguanas shrinking their skeletons to survive.

Additional threats to this fragile ecosystem include population growth, large scale tourism, and \240introduced plants, insects, and animals,

I have an ethical dilemma just being here. Am I contributing to the loss of species? \240I probably am but I hope that I can leave a small foot print and use what I see and learn for good. \240

Rancho Manzanilla is a farm where the giant tortoises roam free. \240It was muddy so we got to wear wellies. \240There were some really big males who have a longer tail. \240The females are smaller and walk over 7 miles down to the coast, 150 feet above the sea, to lay their eggs. \240It takes them a month. Researchers gather the eggs and take them to the Darwin Center.

Every turtle has a chip to track them. \240Scientists haven’t figured out how to tell their age, but the big males may be 120-150 years old.

There are over 4000 tortoises on Santa Cruz. There were over 200,000 before they were hunted.

The ranch is named after the Manzinilla tree, indemic to the island and poisonous to people and most animals. The giant tortoises can eat the small fruit from this tree.

Our boat, the Anahi, has 8 double cabins and we are full. We are the minority with 9 Swiss, 2 Norwegians, 2 Israelis and 3 Americans. \240We are the only two who speak only one language. \240

Our guide, Galo’s family came to the Galapagos in 1900 to open the first bank. \240He has been a naaollturalist guide for 16 years.

Each night he provides a briefing for the next day and they are really interesting. \240He tells us what we might see, how long we will be at sea, what shoes to wear and how much he loves the place.

We passed many Guava trees. These invasive trees grow very fast, squeeze out the endemic plants, and spread by birds. \240They haven’t figured out a way to stop their spread.

Hunters on horseback with dogs passed us on the trail. They were hunting for other invasive species, feral donkeys, pigs, or cows. \240Specially , wild pigs can harm the tortoise nests and babies.

Humedales are mangroves. \240This afternoon we stopped by the Isabella turtle center and then walked through the Humedales. We saw Galapagos flamingoes, a black throat stilt, and lots of iguanas and water birds.

The barren, moon-like landscape is not devoid of life. \240Three types of cactus grow out of the rock. The first to come is the lava cactus which is the pioneer after a new lava flow. \240It is short and furry. \240Very cute.

There is also candelabra cactus.

And the opuntia or prickly pear that we first saw on Santa Cruz. \240Here, it does not have turtles or iguanas as predators so it has adaptby growing shorter with leaves closer to the ground.

The holes created by the magmatic chambers often fill with water to make lagoons. \240These beautiful oases are home to fish, sharks, sea turtles and a variety of birds. \240It is an amazing site to be walking across a pitch-black lava field to all of a sudden see an infusion of pink - 4 pink flamingos! \240We also saw the rare Galapagos Martín flying around like swallows.

Penguins

When I told people I was going to the Galápagos to snorkel with penguins, they thought I was crazy. \240The Galápagos penguin, endemic, is one of the smallest with an average weight of 5.3 pounds and 19 inches tall. \240It is the only penguin found north of the equator. \240They feed on the abundance of small fish found in the Humboldt current. Many penguins we saw were mounting, making them appear to be wearing a fur collar. \240Mounting is a sign that they are ready to breed. \240On our first snorkeling activity at Punta Moreno, I saw a penguin torpedo by. My life is complete!

Later, at Elizabeth Bay, we watched a flock of penguins fish in the mangroves. \240They darted here and there, popping up around our panga. I expected to see penguins on the rocks, but not in the mangroves. Also unusual for the Galapagos, is that sealions don’t hunt penguins and they live together.

Today’s theme is iguanas and sharks.

The Galapagos islands have both land and marine iguanas.  The marine iguanas are thought to have inhabited the islands for over 9 million years.  The current Galapagos islands are a little over 5 million years old.  How can this be, you might ask?  Well as we learned, as the earth’s plates continue to move a little every year, the plate that the Galapagos islands sit on is moving east, underneath South America resulting in islands disappearing into the sea very slowly. Espanola is currently the oldest island at 5 million years old and Fernandina, the newest and most westerly island is around 700,000 years old.  

We observed four types of iguanas – the grey land iguanas, the yellow land iguanas, marine iguanas and lava lizards.  The coloration varies based on where they live.  Dark lava islands have dark iguanas.  Land iguanas can get to be over 3 feet long and weigh 30 pounds

The yellow iguanas of Isabella island blend in with the yellow flowers of the cordia lutia tree. \240They might spend 3 weeks digging their nest, or they fight for an already built one.

Marine iguanas are the only sea-going lizard in the world.  They warm up, breed, and sleep on land.  They eat algae in the sea.  If they get hungry, they actually shrink their skeleton becoming smaller and shorter.  The males are very territorial and we observed a good fight on the rocks.

Lava lizards are miniature iguanas and the most abundant reptile in the Galapagos.  They look like big geckos and can be found almost anywhere – sunning themselves on the rocks and warning you not to come closer by pumping their head up and down. They females are identified by their red necks.

Galapagos sharks

Most divers come to the Galapagos to see sharks.  I was more than fine seeing two or three.  Even though I knew they would not hurt me, they still give me a bit of a chill.  

We saw white-tip reef sharks while snorking and baby sharks on panga rides.  We observed one sleeping on the ocean floor where there was a good current as sharks need water going through their gills at all times.  They grow to be about 6 feet, are curious and often swam close to us.  They eat crustaceans, mollusks, small fish, and octopus.  

Two snorkeling excursions today!  The second, at the nose of Isabela’s seahorse shape on Vicenta Roca Point is the best I have ever experienced.  It started with a short snorkel with a penguin, followed by some turtles, then more turtles, then large schools of tropical fish, then more turtles, then a romp with a sealion, a couple drive-by sharks, culminating in turtle heaven. There had to be 75-100 turtles resting, swimming, floating…  It was amazing

Sea lions played around our panga as we viewed our last Flightless Cormorant, and enjoyed seeing a penguin, lots of blue-footed boobies and a Nazca booby.   This amazing day ended with a long sail that brought us over the equator, around the top of Isabela island, and back into the southern Hemisphere.

The theme for today is the flightless cormorant and sealions.  The flightless cormorant is native to the Galapagos and is a perfect example of adaptability.  It is only found on Isabela and Fernandina islands.  It is a strong swimmer and eats small sea creatures abundant in the cold Humboldt current.  Like all cormorants, its feathers are not waterproof so it has to spend time drying its wings each day.  Unlike any other cormorant, it does not fly as all of its food comes from the sea and it has no predators.

Sea lions

There are two types of sea lions in the Galapagos.  The most prevalent is the Galapagos sea lion and there are also fur sea lions.  The Galapagos sea lion is black when wet and brown when dry.  They can be found all over the place – on rocks, on benches, on boats, on ledges.  The males have territories with harems of females and their babies.  The bachelor sea lions hang out together and when the alpha male is away, can often be found within the harem.  

The Galapagos fur sea lion was hunted to almost the point of extinction.  They are smaller, have a thicker fur, and have larger eyes.  They are usually only seen on Fernandino and Isabella islands.

In the 50’s and 60’s, a number of countries were trying to purchase the islands from the Ecuadorian government.  After Britain and France failed, the American government stepped in and bribed Ecuadorian politicians to turn Galapagos into a national park.  Mr. Egas’s vision of a resort was never achieved as he was forced to vacate the new national park.  The ruins of his home and other structures still remain.

I learned from this example of globalism and American intervention.  The decisions of one country effect those of all others.  What if France or Britain (or America) had purchased the islands? Would they be the pristine wilderness they are today or would they be filled with resorts?  Even though there is no plastic used in the Galapagos, there is still microscopic plastic in the sand that effects the food chain.  Global tourists come to the Galapagos requiring more services resulting in workers from the mainland resulting in an annual population growth of over 6%.  Ten years ago, only about 50 people visited the Sierra Negra caldera a year.  Today, over 70,000.   The animals, sea life, birds and plants of the Galapagos, the petri dish for Darwin’s theory of evolution continue to adapt.  But climate change will affect as many or more creatures than the mass removal of the giant tortoises by the whalers or the hunting of the fur seals for their pelts. \240Will the introduced plants like guava trees take over the islands? \240It’s a fragile ecosystem. I worry about it.

I learned so much from both the crew and my fellow passengers.  Smart, creative, friendly people who spoke several languages, traveled broadly, and explored the world with an open, welcoming heart.

After our snorkel, we cruised to Bartolome island/rock.  The adjoining pinnacle rock is one of the most photographed spots in the Galapagos and it’s not even natural.  When the Americans were stationed here during WWII, they used this small rock island for target practice and dropped a couple of bombs on it resulting in the pinnacle. It was a good hike up almost 400 steps to the summit of Bartolome island resulting in beautiful views and pictures all around!

The topic of this post is sex on the beach.  Over the course of the week, we learned about the reproductive habits of a number of Galapagos species and even had the opportunity to observe.  One of the most prolific species is the Sally lightfoot crab.  These red crabs can jump from rock to rock, run in four directions and climb vertical rocks.  Urban legends is that they are named after a dancer named Sally who was very light on her feet.  We saw a number of crabs producing foam.  This indicates that they are about to moult their shell.  When they do, they have only a soft shell and must hide in crevices from predators.  When ready to mate, the female crab approached the male.  She touches him, he touches back and soon the male deposits the sperm sack into the female.  If the male happens to have a soft shell when the female touches him, she EATS him. Poor guy.

Barnacles build a house of calcium attached to almost anything – rocks, boats, turtle shells, whale backs…  Barnacles have the largest sex organ of any animal in proportion to their size. They use this organ to fertilize all the other barnacles near them.  It must be long to reach lots of other Barnacles.

Marine Iguanas.  I observed an iguana carrying another iguana by the neck and asked Galo about this behavior.  He informed us that they were about to have sex and sure enough, pretty soon they were entangled.  Male iguanas also get more colorful during mating season. \240As noted in a previous post, male iguanas defend their territories, however all male iguanas fertilize the females.  Each female lays 1-6 eggs just inland in sand or volcanic dust.  Incubation takes about 95 days.  Baby iguanas look and act like mini-iguanas and receive no parental care. Baby iguanas are vulnerable to predators like the Galapagos Hawk and snakes.

We observed both the Galapagos Tortoise (land) and the Sea Turtles in the act of reproduction as they mate any time during the year.  In both, the male mounts the female (on land or in water respectively) for oh, about an hour.  

The land tortoise mates any time during the year.  She then makes a long journey, sometimes up to 7 miles, taking as long as a month, to deposit her eggs in a dug nest.  A baby turtles’ sex is determined by the temperature it is incubated at with females at a lower temp than males.  Scientists often gather the eggs to \240hatch them in the research centers.  They must remain in the exact position in which they were found and can not be bounced.   The young remain in the nest alone for 6 – 8 months.  They then emerge and start to eat.  The research centers keep them for 6-8 years until they are bit enough to survive in the wild.  Of the eggs gathered, 50% hatch and 90% of those survive.  This is much, much better odds than left on their own in the wild. 

The Galapagos green turtle is the only sea turtle to breed in the Galapagos.  Mating usually occurs in the summer.  The female can hold the sperm for up to a year before she decides to incubate her eggs.  She then lays 50-200 eggs up from the high-tide marks in the sand.  The eggs incubate for 45-55 days.  Baby turtles are very vulnerable to predators, so they usually hatch together and run as fast as they can to the sea.

On the topic of babies, I love this one of a \240sea lion cub nursing

The theme of this post is the birds of the Galapagos.  My apologies for the number of pictures as I love them all!

Darwin Finch – Commonly thought to be the root of Darwin’s theories, but it was really the mockingbird.

Mockingbird

Flycatcher. These birds were very curious. One sat on my shoulder

Yellow Warbler

Galapagos hawk

Flightless Cormorant

Frigate. They landed on the boat while we sailed. \240The males expand their red throat when they mate. We didn’t get to see this. The females have the white chest.

Red billed tropic bird. They are so exotic with a long white tail.

Four types of herons. Galápagos great blue

Striated Herron

Yellow Crowned Night Herron

Lava Herron

Oyster Catcher

Black Throated Stilt

Brown Noddy Tern

Brown Pelican

Galapagos Flamingo

Nazca Booby

Steve Seagull (Get it? \240I think this is a lava full?)

Blue Footed Booby!

And last, but not least, the Galapagos Penguin