Waters off Isla Del Carmen and Isla Santa Catalina
Some coffee cups after a beautiful sunrise, we were coursing through the cold waters of the Gulf of California in the Bahia Loreto Marine Reserve in search of big marine mammals, also known as whales. In no time, we sighted a blue whale, the biggest animal on our planet today. Some of them can reach sizes of over 100 feet! We saw this big animal on quite a few occasions, coming up to the surface to blow and then diving shallowly and back up again, in sequences of six to eight times. Very few people in the world have the opportunity of seeing this enormous animal so closely! Off in the distance we could see more tall blows. Suddenly we sighted a different blow: a humpback whale! Yes, this whale is known as the acrobat, for they commonly breach and show off. Among all this excitement, we also found ourselves in the midst of a “bochinche” (feeding frenzy) of common dolphins with a good number of brown boobies diving into the waters to capture the same species of fish the dolphins were herding up to the surface.
During the rest of the morning, we moved south towards the island of Santa Catalina, where we stopped after lunch. Activities included snorkeling as well as hiking up into the hills along an arroyo or dry riverbed. Lupines and many other plants were in bloom everywhere. Cacti grow exceedingly well here. The very common Giant Barrel Cactus of this island can reach heights of up to 14 feet! Then we came upon one of the marvelous denizens of these Mexican “Galápagos Islands,” where each island has its own assemblage of endemic species of plants and animals. Today it was the very rare Santa Catalina rattleless rattlesnake! And not only one, but by the end of our afternoon sojourn on the island, we had encountered four individuals! These rattlesnakes do not have a rattle. They have evolved on this island alone, under conditions of no predation, so they have obviated an unnecessary structure. Or another reason may be that as they climb bushes to catch their preferred prey of small birds, the rattle could make sound and scare off their potential prey. Other reptiles here are the endemic emerald tailed lizard, a quite common inhabitant of this granitic island of the Gulf of California, Mexico.
Some coffee cups after a beautiful sunrise, we were coursing through the cold waters of the Gulf of California in the Bahia Loreto Marine Reserve in search of big marine mammals, also known as whales. In no time, we sighted a blue whale, the biggest animal on our planet today. Some of them can reach sizes of over 100 feet! We saw this big animal on quite a few occasions, coming up to the surface to blow and then diving shallowly and back up again, in sequences of six to eight times. Very few people in the world have the opportunity of seeing this enormous animal so closely! Off in the distance we could see more tall blows. Suddenly we sighted a different blow: a humpback whale! Yes, this whale is known as the acrobat, for they commonly breach and show off. Among all this excitement, we also found ourselves in the midst of a “bochinche” (feeding frenzy) of common dolphins with a good number of brown boobies diving into the waters to capture the same species of fish the dolphins were herding up to the surface.
During the rest of the morning, we moved south towards the island of Santa Catalina, where we stopped after lunch. Activities included snorkeling as well as hiking up into the hills along an arroyo or dry riverbed. Lupines and many other plants were in bloom everywhere. Cacti grow exceedingly well here. The very common Giant Barrel Cactus of this island can reach heights of up to 14 feet! Then we came upon one of the marvelous denizens of these Mexican “Galápagos Islands,” where each island has its own assemblage of endemic species of plants and animals. Today it was the very rare Santa Catalina rattleless rattlesnake! And not only one, but by the end of our afternoon sojourn on the island, we had encountered four individuals! These rattlesnakes do not have a rattle. They have evolved on this island alone, under conditions of no predation, so they have obviated an unnecessary structure. Or another reason may be that as they climb bushes to catch their preferred prey of small birds, the rattle could make sound and scare off their potential prey. Other reptiles here are the endemic emerald tailed lizard, a quite common inhabitant of this granitic island of the Gulf of California, Mexico.
