Located in the northern hemisphere, Genovesa island was an old volcano with a collapsed caldera. This island is home of a great number of sea birds and unique for its lack of land reptiles and Galapagos hawks. As we entered Darwin Bay, we were escorted by red-footed boobies and frigate birds who welcomed us to this incredible place.
Our day started early in the morning by visiting two separated landing sites, one at Prince Philip’s Steps and the other at Darwin Bay. I disembarked on the white coralline beach of Darwin Bay, formed at the far end of the caldera and surrounded by red mangroves trees. A great highlight during the visit was our first encounter with the colorful red-footed boobies, who are just as enchanting as their blue-footed cousins. We found many of them nesting and perching in trees, while on the beach was a delightful small sea lion colony. Walking along the shoreline, we observed male frigate birds with their red sacks inflated, producing unmistakable noises to call the attention of females which flied around of them choosing the best to couple with during this mating season.
After the first outing, we had chance to snorkel along the vertical cliffs, observing several large parrot fish species, angel fish, wrasse, and Moorish idols. Kayakers got to paddle at the base of impressive cliffs, while the cries of the birds overhead reverberated around the caldera.
In the afternoon, we landed at Prince Philip’s Steps. Vegetation here is composed mainly of dry palo santo trees, which contrasted with the greenery of mangrove trees observed in the morning. Walking inland we observed a great number of Nazca and red-footed boobies, but when we abandoned the forest, along the brown lava field we observed several short-eared owls that were patiently waiting for smaller birds to fly close enough to be pounced on. Everywhere else other birds courted, nested, and interacted in many different ways. The wind was blowing, refreshing us with nice weather while we observed these strange and wonderful creatures, so completely ecologically naive, go on with their lives unhindered. We finally arrived back at the National Geographic Endeavour with the best memories and experiences in this magical place.
