Fernandina Island
Fernandina is one of my favorite islands in the archipelago. It is definitely not easy to choose one in particular, as every single island has something special. Fernandina Island, with its spectacular volcanic settings, provides its inhabitants with the most breathtaking background. Today was not an exception: for a considerable period of time we observed hundreds of marine iguanas basking under the equatorial sun, nesting flightless cormorants, playful Galapagos sea lions, Galapagos penguins both swimming and on land.
Fernandina has not only a wonderful terrestrial environment, but the snorkeling here is excellent too. After the walk, many of our guests had the opportunity to snorkel in this unique place. In addition to the now familiar colorful fish, we also saw Pacific green sea turtles, penguins chasing small fish, sea lions teasing and marine iguanas grazing! We were all astounded by these sightings - snorkeling today was the perfect complement to a great morning spent on Fernandina.
The marine iguana is the only sea-going lizard in the world. These unique iguanas eat algae, which grows in large amounts especially in this part of the archipelago. Fernandina and Isabela Islands are located to the western of Galapagos, and benefit from the cool, rich upwellings of the Cromwell Undercurrent. Marine iguanas have excellent swimming and diving skills. Juveniles and females feed in the intertidal zone or on exposed rocks on the shore. Male marine iguanas are very large, at the same time they are very strong swimmers and feed offshore by diving. The diving abilities of marine iguanas are striking: normal dives can last from five to ten minutes and most are in shallow waters, between 4 and 15 ft (1.5-5m). Some individuals can descend to more than 12 m (36 feet) below the surface and can remain submerged for as long as sixty minutes! To be able to hold their breath and make these dives for such long times in cold waters, marine iguanas show some remarkable adaptations. These reptiles are able to slow their heartbeat, and in addition their slow metabolism allows them to do hard work without needing to renew their oxygen supply for a considerable period of time. A truly unique creature, that is one of the most emblematic and interesting animals that live in the Galapagos.
Fernandina is one of my favorite islands in the archipelago. It is definitely not easy to choose one in particular, as every single island has something special. Fernandina Island, with its spectacular volcanic settings, provides its inhabitants with the most breathtaking background. Today was not an exception: for a considerable period of time we observed hundreds of marine iguanas basking under the equatorial sun, nesting flightless cormorants, playful Galapagos sea lions, Galapagos penguins both swimming and on land.
Fernandina has not only a wonderful terrestrial environment, but the snorkeling here is excellent too. After the walk, many of our guests had the opportunity to snorkel in this unique place. In addition to the now familiar colorful fish, we also saw Pacific green sea turtles, penguins chasing small fish, sea lions teasing and marine iguanas grazing! We were all astounded by these sightings - snorkeling today was the perfect complement to a great morning spent on Fernandina.
The marine iguana is the only sea-going lizard in the world. These unique iguanas eat algae, which grows in large amounts especially in this part of the archipelago. Fernandina and Isabela Islands are located to the western of Galapagos, and benefit from the cool, rich upwellings of the Cromwell Undercurrent. Marine iguanas have excellent swimming and diving skills. Juveniles and females feed in the intertidal zone or on exposed rocks on the shore. Male marine iguanas are very large, at the same time they are very strong swimmers and feed offshore by diving. The diving abilities of marine iguanas are striking: normal dives can last from five to ten minutes and most are in shallow waters, between 4 and 15 ft (1.5-5m). Some individuals can descend to more than 12 m (36 feet) below the surface and can remain submerged for as long as sixty minutes! To be able to hold their breath and make these dives for such long times in cold waters, marine iguanas show some remarkable adaptations. These reptiles are able to slow their heartbeat, and in addition their slow metabolism allows them to do hard work without needing to renew their oxygen supply for a considerable period of time. A truly unique creature, that is one of the most emblematic and interesting animals that live in the Galapagos.
