South Plazas & Santa Fe Island
South Plaza and North Plaza Islands lie off the eastern coast of their larger neighbor Santa Cruz, and both support some of the archipelago’s largest colonies of Galápagos sea lions. The low, northern shore of South Plaza has been divided into several territories, well-defended by some of the largest beach-masters in the Galápagos Islands.
South Plaza Island is also home of the endemic Galápagos land iguanas. Some populations had been nearly wiped out by feral dogs; however a hugely successful captive and semi-captive breeding program run by the CDF and GNPS has allowed these endangered populations to recover.
We landed here at 8:00am to hike across the island in the search of these almost pre-historic creatures, surrounded by some of the most beautiful and colorful scenery – there was Opuntia cactus and the red-orange-green carpet of Sesuvium, a plant that changes color according to the season.
Once we finished the hike, we enjoyed a swim and jumping off the ship. The water temperature was perfect, and we were even privileged to see a juvenile scalloped hammerhead swimming around near the ship.
We then headed to Santa Fé Island for a range of activities. Early in the afternoon while the sun was high we offered a deep-water snorkeling outing and another kayaking opportunity for non-snorkelers. On return from the water activities, we set off for walks onshore.
Two trails lead inland. A loop trail over bouldery terrain, which circle past some of the largest prickly-pear cactus trees on the island, and a much longer, strenuous hike up to the plateau of the islands. Along both trails land iguanas and prickly-pear cacti were spread out over a large area.
At one time, Santa Fé Island was overrun with goats. Since then, the eradication of feral goats and donkeys has been a priority for the preservation of the Galápagos ecosystem. Major programs for islands much larger than this have been carried out successfully in the last decade here in Galápagos.
We ended learning much more about the successful eradication programs conducted by the National Park, and we added two more endemic species to our list!
