Those experiences that encourage a deep connection between children and nature provide a unique opportunity to create future stewards for conservation. This is what this week has demonstrated to me. We have shared with wonderful families an amazing journey around the central and eastern islands of the Galapagos archipelago. The enjoyment of the children today was so contagious that everyone felt a genuine sense of discovery. Today we enjoyed the last day of a magical week on Genovesa Island, a perfect place to end an unforgettable expedition. Here we were able to witness an incredible diversity of birds.
Our first activity was a kayaking journey along the beautiful cliffs, where we could observe an immense number of birds. This island is home to two different species of frigate birds (great and magnificent), swallowed tailed gulls, Nazca boobies, and herons. However, it is the red footed booby which is the most abundant inhabitant of Genovesa. At this time of the year juvenile red footed boobies are learning how to fly and get food on their own. They will have to acquire the skills to survive before the next mating season, as their parents will stop providing food then. Nests were all along the trail, with red footed boobies and swallowed tailed gull chicks being protected from the potential attacks from frigate birds. We then visited Darwin Bay beach where we walked among dozens of nests and thousands of birds flying so close to us that we could feel their wing flaps. Finally, we did our final snorkeling of the week. The waters of Genovesa are a great place to find colorful shoals of Moorish idols.
In the afternoon we visited Prince Philips steps, one of the most majestic trails we have in the Galapagos National Park. It is difficult to describe with words the feeling of having around us thousands of boobies, frigates, tropical birds and petrels flying, singing, flapping, learning to fly, eating, competing, mating, incubating, and thriving. The best moment of the day was when we spotted two short eared owls waiting to attack a petrel while he was getting out of his tiny lava cave. The web of life in the Galapagos is a great example of survival, competition and creation. At this stage of the journey we all are immersed in such a dynamic rhythm of life and the experiences we have from this voyage will remain for a long time as some of our best memories.
