Española Island, also called Hood Island by English pirates back in the 1700s, is one of the oldest islands of the enchanted archipelago. Its estimated age of around 4 million years has given endemic species more time to evolve in isolation. The mockingbird of Española is one of the four varieties present on the islands, and interestingly enough, they are one of the species that got Darwin’s attention back in 1835, when he noticed that “there is a difference between the inhabitants of the different islands”… As he collected three out of the four, he was able to see the physical differences on them, and he realized that something strange must be happening in this place.
As we continued to walk among the trails that where once pahoe-hoe lava flowed, we had a chance to see the entire breeding cycle of the Nazca Boobies: couples courting, couples making a nest, couples preening each other, parents incubating eggs and finally parents shifting turns to protect brand new chicks from the Galapagos Hawks that prey upon them.
As we returned to the ship at sunset time, we reflect on what we have seen today, and we understand that these ecosystems need to be protected, not only so that we can visit them and learn from them, but also for the animal species that belong only here and nowhere else!
