Isabela and Fernandina Islands
From sunrise to sunset, marine mammals kept us busy today! In the early morning we were out on deck in our pajamas watching five feeding Bryde’s whales. The Islander took us safely into the Southern Hemisphere, and officially we honked the ship’s whistle when we crossed the equator line. We took a Zodiac ride along Punta Vicente Roca and among the highlights were blue-footed boobies in a feeding frenzy, being surrounded by the ocean sunfish, or Mola mola. These fish start their lives as tiny larvae, and eventually reach 2 tons in weight and 10 feet across.
Today the wildlife was concentrated every where we went! During the snorkeling outing, sea turtles slowly cruised right next to us. Others were quiet on the sandy bottom being preened by wrasses at a cleaning station. Curious young penguins were checking out our Zodiacs and feeding on an enormous school of salema. In addition, we spotted an octopus in between the rocks, and sea lions joined us to play.
In the afternoon, while we were walking at Punta Espinoza, the flightless cormorants were nesting. Marine iguana in “piles” were sun bathing to warm up before the evening. Suddenly, quite a distance off shore, we spotted a pair of orcas. We rushed down to the dock and boarded our Zodiacs to follow them. Frigate birds, Galápagos shearwaters and brown noddy terns fluttered above us, feeding on scraps of whatever the orcas had killed.
There were two males: “Beto,” an attractive orca that has been seen often in the last five years hanging sometimes with other males, females and babies. Accompanying him was a younger male who we baptized “Nacho” because he can easily be recognized by the notch on his dorsal fin. Nacho also has a dark saddle patch. Both these whales have been seen feeding on sunfish, tuna, sharks, rays, turtles, dolphins and Bryde’s whales. This feeding behavior is different from orca feeding recorded in other parts of the world.
It’s hard to select one highlight from a successful day like this!
From sunrise to sunset, marine mammals kept us busy today! In the early morning we were out on deck in our pajamas watching five feeding Bryde’s whales. The Islander took us safely into the Southern Hemisphere, and officially we honked the ship’s whistle when we crossed the equator line. We took a Zodiac ride along Punta Vicente Roca and among the highlights were blue-footed boobies in a feeding frenzy, being surrounded by the ocean sunfish, or Mola mola. These fish start their lives as tiny larvae, and eventually reach 2 tons in weight and 10 feet across.
Today the wildlife was concentrated every where we went! During the snorkeling outing, sea turtles slowly cruised right next to us. Others were quiet on the sandy bottom being preened by wrasses at a cleaning station. Curious young penguins were checking out our Zodiacs and feeding on an enormous school of salema. In addition, we spotted an octopus in between the rocks, and sea lions joined us to play.
In the afternoon, while we were walking at Punta Espinoza, the flightless cormorants were nesting. Marine iguana in “piles” were sun bathing to warm up before the evening. Suddenly, quite a distance off shore, we spotted a pair of orcas. We rushed down to the dock and boarded our Zodiacs to follow them. Frigate birds, Galápagos shearwaters and brown noddy terns fluttered above us, feeding on scraps of whatever the orcas had killed.
There were two males: “Beto,” an attractive orca that has been seen often in the last five years hanging sometimes with other males, females and babies. Accompanying him was a younger male who we baptized “Nacho” because he can easily be recognized by the notch on his dorsal fin. Nacho also has a dark saddle patch. Both these whales have been seen feeding on sunfish, tuna, sharks, rays, turtles, dolphins and Bryde’s whales. This feeding behavior is different from orca feeding recorded in other parts of the world.
It’s hard to select one highlight from a successful day like this!
