Isabela & Fernandina Island
From sunrise to sunset, today was a good day to have been alive. Early in the morning the National Geographic Polaris circumnavigated Roca Redonda which from a distance appeared to be desolate, but once we approached it, we discovered it was teeming with life. Flocks of Galápagos shearwaters, red-billed tropicbirds and Nazca boobies flew in and out the rock.
As we headed south to Punta Vicente Roca, crossing the Equator for the second time (this time north to south), the views of the volcanoes were very dramatic.
Blue-footed boobies plunge-dove for fish, and from time to time we saw sea turtles' heads pop up to the surface of the sea to take in air, then quietly disappear in front of our eyes. Fur seals and large marine iguanas were basking in the sun amongst the third smallest penguin in the world, the Galápagos penguin, which is the only one to live in these latitudes. Their colonies are so small and they struggle to find enough food, however this has been a good year for them due to cold nutrient-rich waters bathing the shore lines. This allowed them to reproduce much more than any other year, and therefore increase their numbers to about 2000 individuals in the entire Archipelago.
Punta Espinoza is located at the northeastern corner of Fernandina Island, the youngest of all of the Galápagos islands. We feel that life is generated from here: lava cacti create new soil for other plants to grow. The uniqueness of the island is reflected in flightless cormorants that have lost their aptitude to fly, due to the lack of predators and the abundance of food in shallow waters.
All birds participate in a frenetic dance for life and the survival of the species on earth.
We all came back to the ship with big smiles on our faces; it has been indeed another wonderful day in paradise.
