The Galapagos Islands are so different from each other and they all have their own flavor. Yesterday we were surrounded by Giant tortoises and lush vegetation. Today we are on South Plaza Island and this place is a desert, it is dry and dotted with cactuses and carpet weeds. This is the type of ecosystem that land iguanas and lava lizards like.
This island is small and full of wildlife. As we disembarked we spotted sea lions, swallow tailed gulls and land iguanas. These endemic reptiles have reached a large population, more than a thousand! This number has threatened the very tree that makes their life possible.
Iguanas and cactuses have a tight relationship. Cactuses provide food and iguanas distribute cactus seeds. The result of this is relationship is more cactuses in the area to produce more food. Here on South Plaza, iguanas have outnumbered the cactus trees and have eaten all the bay cactuses. Therefore only old cactuses are seen.
The Charles Darwin Research Station and the Galapagos National Park have started a program to reforest cactuses. We hope this island will have a healthy ecosystem in the near future.
For the second part of the day we explored Santa Fe Island. Here we had the opportunity to snorkel with sea lions and sea turtles. Some of us chose kayaking and explored the dramatic cliffs of the north side of Santa Fe. This island has a great collection of creatures. There are Darwin finches and mocking birds, but the most conspicuous is the Galápagos sea lion. These marine mammals form colonies on the beaches and they are playful and charming. In the late afternoon we had some time to explore the dry forest in search of the endemic Santa Fe land iguana. It was a successful day as we found several of these endemic creatures!
