Genovesa Island
Sometime during the night, we crossed the equator for the fifth time – this time heading north to the small island of Genovesa. By the time I awoke, we were surrounded by the steep walls of the sunken caldera, frigate birds, swallow - tailed gulls and red-footed boobies wheeled overhead.
Our morning walk took us over rough lava into the middle of a great frigate bird nesting site - bare trees with loose stick nests holding fluffy white chicks were everywhere. I cannot believe how close we were able to get, you could see the real eye ring and the green sheen on the back feathers of the adults. Our guide Rafael, encouraged us to have a minute of silence to absorb the sounds of the island, the swallow-tailed gull’s ratting call, the waves breaking on the rocks, and the whistling and honking of the boobies. A magical moment! And our day was just beginning: snorkeling today was alongside the caldera wall. At one point I was following a trigger fish, until I noticed that the floor just fell away into a green void – quite disconcerting.
After another great lunch, my group explored the storm-petrel colony and searched for short-eared owls. Our good luck continued – we found 5 owls: one with a storm-petrel in its talons, a second flying low over the rough lava, and another waiting patiently outside a lava tube for an unsuspecting storm-petrel to emerge. I don’t know how Raphael spots the owls – their rust and brown coloring perfectly matches the lava.
Today was certainly a seabird day – hundred of them, in the sky, on the cliffs, and on their nests. The numbers are incredible. Back on board, everyone is sharing their stories about “another day in paradise.”
Sometime during the night, we crossed the equator for the fifth time – this time heading north to the small island of Genovesa. By the time I awoke, we were surrounded by the steep walls of the sunken caldera, frigate birds, swallow - tailed gulls and red-footed boobies wheeled overhead.
Our morning walk took us over rough lava into the middle of a great frigate bird nesting site - bare trees with loose stick nests holding fluffy white chicks were everywhere. I cannot believe how close we were able to get, you could see the real eye ring and the green sheen on the back feathers of the adults. Our guide Rafael, encouraged us to have a minute of silence to absorb the sounds of the island, the swallow-tailed gull’s ratting call, the waves breaking on the rocks, and the whistling and honking of the boobies. A magical moment! And our day was just beginning: snorkeling today was alongside the caldera wall. At one point I was following a trigger fish, until I noticed that the floor just fell away into a green void – quite disconcerting.
After another great lunch, my group explored the storm-petrel colony and searched for short-eared owls. Our good luck continued – we found 5 owls: one with a storm-petrel in its talons, a second flying low over the rough lava, and another waiting patiently outside a lava tube for an unsuspecting storm-petrel to emerge. I don’t know how Raphael spots the owls – their rust and brown coloring perfectly matches the lava.
Today was certainly a seabird day – hundred of them, in the sky, on the cliffs, and on their nests. The numbers are incredible. Back on board, everyone is sharing their stories about “another day in paradise.”
