Today we had the opportunity to learn about two species of sea lion found in the Galapagos archipelago. One of them came from the north and is very closely related to the California sea lion. The other one, the so-called fur seal, came from the southern hemisphere. Here, they both coexist along the coastline. They don’t compete for the same food source because the fur seal is a nocturnal hunter while the Galapagos sea lion hunts during daylight hours. We also had the opportunity to observe many other animals endemic to Galapagos, such as mockingbirds, lizards, iguanas, Darwin finches, flycatchers, and of course, the top predator in the archipelago, the Galapagos hawk.
5/6/2025
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National Geographic Islander II
North Seymour and Rabida Islands
At 6:30 in the morning, some guests joined us for an expedition on North Seymour Island, which is slowly losing its green color due to the beginning of the dry season. It is a perfect time of year to see blue-footed booby couples starting to reproduce with the typical courtship displays and a good number of male frigatebirds with their red gular sack inflated. We encountered a good number of healthy land iguanas since they still have a lot of food, thanks to the previous wet season. While navigating to Rabida Island, bottlenose dolphins escorted National Geographic Islander II for at least 45 minutes, and guests had an excellent time watching them. In the afternoon, we snorkeled from the beach with colorful fish and young, playful sea lions who put on a great show. At the end of the day some guests took a walk on the red colored sand and watched American flamingos behind the dune at a saltwater lagoon. Others went kayaking along the coast full of land and sea birds.
