The Galapagos: Española, the Waved Albatross Mating Dance

We continue on Española.  I’ve mentioned the diversity of life made possible on Española because of the waters’ high nutrient levels. Today we see more examples of that variety of life. We’ve met several of these ‘residents’ elsewhere in the Galapagos:  the marine iguanas, Sally light-foot crabs, the blue-footed and masked boobies, the Galapagos dove and the cactus finch.  My focus in this post will be a few of the animals that have won my heart (you know there are sea lion pups coming) and those that are unique to Española.

                                                          Sea lions on Española.

This video of playful pups always makes me smile so I’m sharing it before we move on to Punta Suarez.

          (If you have difficulty seeing the video, please visit https://tinyurl.com/playful-sea-lion-pups )

Along the way we encounter boobies, and one particular family that highlights nature’s law of the survival of the fittest.  Often when boobies have two chicks, the stronger chick will keep the weaker sibling from the nest, from sustenance, and ultimately, from survival.  That’s what we see in the photo below (I know I posted this earlier when I first learned about boobies, but Española is where I encounter this family, so here they are again.

The hard life of the second-born booby

All of us are saddened by that poor sibling starving just outside the mother's care, but guide Roberto reminds us that we must not interfere with nature.  We don’t.

We’re heading to Punta Suarez on the western tip of the island.  In an earlier entry I focused on Darwin’s study of the birds, and his theory of evolution based primarily on finches.  At that time I shared some other bird photos, including the Hood Mockingbird.  That may have been misleading:  the Hood Mockingbird lives on Española, and only on Española. 

Hood Mockingbird, unique to Espanola

Another bird that lives only on this island is the waved albatross.  While their flight takes them along the coastal waters of South America, they come to Española to raise their families.  We’re heading toward the area we might see them.

On our way we have a chance to see a blowhole.  I’ve never heard that term before. It describes a marine geyser that forms when a cave in the sea grows upward and toward the land.  The resulting chimney-like duct compresses the sea water that then explodes through the top—the blowhole.  On Española, the spray shoots over ninety feet into the air.

Blowhole on the coast in Punta Suarez, Espanola

The waved albatross lives in only one location – on the Galapagos Island of Española – where they have formed two major colonies. They fly over coastal waters off Chile, Peru, Colombia, and Ecuador to forage, and they spend much of their lives over open water.  But they come to the Galapagos to mate, and they mate for life.

Waved Albatross preparing for their mating dance

Waved albatross and chick

I was fortunate to be able to get video of the albatross mating dance, and Roberto’s detailed information about the birds.   If you have trouble seeing this video here, please use the link below the video.

 

https://tinyurl.com/Albatross-dance-1

And if you want to enjoy more of the wave albatross mating dance and hear the rest of Roberto’s explanation about these extraordinary https://tinyurl.com/Albatross-dance-2 
https://tinyurl.com/Albatross-dance-3

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