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Birding the Galapagos Islands

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Birding the Galapagos Islands SITE GUIDE Birdingthe GalapagosIslands Thevista from the south coast cliffs at PuntaSuarez, Espa•ola. The cr•me de la cr•meof Galapagosvisitor sites. Photo/Ron Naveen. Ron Naveen cialties. Sometimes, birders mistakenly olution in Galapagostourism in the byair andwater, but prospectivevisitors visit the Galapagosbetween mid-De- HERE1980s. HASA combinationBEENAVERITABLE of events REV- has have a wealth of tours from which to cember and March when the spectac- made these enchanted islands a more choose. ular Waved Albatrossis usuallyabsent, accessible attraction to thousands of Tourism on the islandsis closelyreg- taking a post-breedingsojourn off the travelersand natural historyenthusiasts. ulated by the Ecuadoriangovernment, South American coast. In fact, a Galapagos trip has become Every visitor must employ an Ecu- Often, even for the seasoned,logistics practically de rigueur for birders and adorian company for arrangements are maddening:even with the best of bird-watchers of all skills and stripes. while there. Despite voluminous adver- planning and plenty of time, there is a The purposeof this account is to take tisingfor a seeminglyendless variety of decent chance that some of the rarities a modern-day look at the islands that tours at varied prices, particularly in will be missed.The problem, simply, is captivated Darwin, Melville, Beebe, American publications,it bearsnoting that some of the endemic bird species Lack, Nelson, and De Roy--and to em- that all of these tour operators must and attractive indigenous birds have phasize the possibilities and pitfalls work with one of the five or six Ecu- very narrow ranges,or are found only solelyfrom a birder's point of view. adorian companiesthat handle charter at widely distant parts of the archipel- Ten years ago, relatively few tours cruisesthrough the islands. ago. Planningone's trip necessarilyin- visitedthe "cradle of evolution." Many Becausethe majority of Galapagos volves some gambling. The smaller of those trips utilized a vesselknown as visitorsare non-birders,most itineraries boatsgenerally move at lessthan eight the Lina-A, which now rests perma- reflect a generalist'sorientation. These knots per hour, a snail's pace that re- nentlyon the floor of the PacificOcean, routine itinerariesoffer a wide sampling quires a 10-day minimum to visi! the the victim of a scurrulous insurance of the avifauna, but more seriousbird important birding locations. Con- seam. Since then, Galapagos tourism students are apt to be disappointed. vetsely, the larger vesselsare much has flourishedand proliferated.This is Many people visit the Galapagoswith faster,but by choiceor by virtueof re- mainly due to the introduction of reg- inflatedbirding expectations, then suffer striction,they don't (or can't) visitsome ular air service to the islands and the acute depression(usually on the return of the premier birding haunts. conversionof many smallerfishing ves- flightto the mainland)when they realize It behooves the interested birder to sels(30-60 feet)into touting boats.Not that their itinerary never offered a question a prospective tour operator only is accessto Galapagoseasier both chancefor certain Galapagosbird sloe- closelyabout the itinerary and whether 6 American Birds,Spring 1988 or not a bi- or multi-lingual guide will be on board. Three largecruise ships are presently active in the islands, but the scene is dominated by the smaller touring ves- selsthat carry from four to twenty pas- sengers.In 1986, 26,023 touristsvisited the GalapagosIslands, and the numbers will likely rise. With the Ecuadorian economy tottering as a result of the massive 1987 earthquakes, Galapagos tourism may become a primary means for keepingthe economy afloat. All of this follows persistentstories regarding additionallanding strips (a newjet-strip openedon SanCristobal Island in 1986) and the possibility of a gambling casino Red-billedTropicbird over the southcoast or EspaYola.Their shrill,policeman-like calls are and resort on southern Isabela Island. oftenheard beforethe birds are seen.Photo/Ron Naveen. Even before the 1987 earthquake, Ecuadorwasn't considereda very pros- "open" areas, visitors must stay on the and west. The cold water is an impor- perous country, thus, its attention to designatedhiking and walking paths. tant ecologicalphenomenon because of preservingGalapagos--despite the ob- Visits to the tourist sites are accom- the substantialproductivity it bringsto stacles•is a rather remarkable accom- plished by riding a panga, a small this tropical climate. This is why the plishment. The government'slatest ef- wooden boat fitted with an outboard most northerly penguins in the world fort is the 1986 proclamation of a Ma- motor, from your tourist boat to shore. survive rather well in the Galapagos. rine ResourcesReserve for Galapagos, Wet landingsare the norm, not the ex- There are 13 major islands,six minor coveringall internal watersand extend- ception. islands,42 isletswith given names, and ing at least15 nauticalmiles around the scoresof unnamed rocks, outcrops, and archipelago.On balance, the marriage footholds. Spanish place names are between the often competing goals of THE ISL•4NDS preferred by Galapagoeniansand are tourism and conservation seems to be usedhere. (A list of correspondingEn- holding stable for the moment. Galapagosstraddles the Equator, far glish names appears at the end of the One government agency, INGALA, south of Chicago and 600 miles west of article). Darwin trod four of the islands administers to the needs of the islands' Guayaquil, Ecuador. The islands are in 1835, during the voyageof the Bea- human residentsand another, the Na- bathed by two cold currentsthat bring gle, and there is the chance to traverse tional Park Service, trains naturalist rich and prey-laden, 20øC, water from some of the same earth that he walked. guides,eradicates feral cats,dogs, pigs, May to December: the Humboldt, In this century, the islandshave been goats, and rats, and establishesand which flows north along the South the focus of a number of seminal sci- maintains preservation areas. The in- American Coast and the submarine entific expeditionsand studies.William dependent Charles Darwin Research Cromwell, which flows from the south Beebe and the New York Zoological Station,funded jointly by the Ecuador- Jan government, the Worm Wildlife Fund, and other international agencies like the Smithsonian Institution, San Diego Zoo, Frankfurt ZoologicalSoci- ety, and UNESCO, and recently, by funds from a Nature Conservancy en- dowment, carriesout scientificresearch. The Station is located in Puerto Ayora, AcademyBay, on southernSanta Cruz Island. Forty-three visitor siteshave been es- tablished, along with various rules to protect the fragile ecology.Every tour- ing vesselmust be accompaniedby a naturalist or auxiliary guide who is sanctioned,trained, and certifiedby the National Park Service or the Charles Darwin Research Station. Your guide is your "ticket" to each of the visitor sites.Generally, the sitesmust be visited in daylight("six to six" on the Equator) Elliot• Storm-Petrelcharacteristically pattering the surfaceat Tagus Cove, lsabela. This is and, with the exception of the so-called the closestrelative of the Wilson• Storm-Petrel.Photo/Ron Naveen. Volume 42, Number 1 7 A WavedAlbatross gaping during its court- ship displayat the Punta Suarezcolony. The courtshipis accompaniedby much bowing, grunting,mooing, and sway-walking.Photo/ Ron Naveen However, without getting to loftier habitats like the transitional, humid, or fern-grass-sedgezones, the visiting birder doesn't have a chanceof finding some of the specialties. On one of the short (i.e. fewer than 10 days)trips on the largeand fastcruise ships,there will be no difficultyreaching importantbirding outposts like Espafiola (Waved Albatross, large-billed Large CactusGround Finch. Hood Mocking- bird), Fernandina (GalapagosPenguin, Flightless Cormorant), and Genovesa (Red-footed Booby, Sharp-beaked Ground Finch, small-billedLarge Cactus Ground Finch). On short trips with smaller vessds,however, it's difficult to reach even one of these outer locations without detracting seriouslyfrom im- portant siteson the centralislands. Society in the 1920s; the pioneering Darwin's Finch studies of David Lack and Peter Grant; and, Bryan Nelson's monumental seabird work in the 1960s are but a few. Galapagos also is the home of Tui De Roy, whose beautiful and sensitivephotographs have done much to popularize the islands in the 1980s,and to direct our attention to the archipelago'sfragile status. Yes, thereis much tradition and history tied to a Galapagosvisit, adding genuine luster to what would be, in any event, a spec- tacular wildlife trip. Thered gape of a callingLava Gull, a veryrare, but usually seen Galapagos endemic. Photo/ Most incomingflights land at the air- Ron Naveen. port on Baltra, also known as South SeymourIsland, which is locatedin the Ayora, hopingto hire a touringboat on Regarding creature-comforts:there's centralpart of the archipelago.You can short notice. This is a gamble that is no questionthat the largercruise ships still sail from Guayaquil to the islands likely to take a lot of time that could offer more room, but you won't neces- on one of the larger tour vessds(a good more valuably be spenton board and sarily enjoy the companyof 60-80 trav- way to look for Cape Pigeons,Parkin- en route, visiting the islands.Moreover, eling companions, and a break-neck son's Petrel, and Markham's Storm-Pe- it's not likely that one of thesespur-of-
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