As Ali sees it

Wednesday, 5 May 2010

Galapagos Islands Iguanas

Galapagos Islands
20-30 April 2010

The Galapagos are also famous for Iguanas. 2 types of land iguana and a marine iguana.

The Marine Iguanas like a careful balance of heat for there bodies... here they are huddled in the shade.

Marine Iguanas are very tough looking dudes.

If you look very carefully you will see a Marine Iguana swimming.

land Iguana... fine looking fellow.

Lava Lizard sitting on an Iguanas back.... the lizard eats the lice and ticks from the Iguana.

This was one of the best land iguanas I saw... really great camo clours happening.

Galapagos Islands Landscape photos.

Galapagos Islands
20-30 April 2010

Landscape Photo´s

Bit hard to tell from the distance, but I think the boat on the left was mine.... called Aida Maria.

Lava forms interesting patterns.

Sunset over the prickly pear cacti.

Tortoises in the Galapagos Islands

Galapagos Islands20-30 April 2010

Perhaps the most famous animal of the Galapagos Islands is the Giant Galapagos Tortoise. I was always a big fan of Harriet, so much so that when she passed away Mum had to write and tell me (I was in Guatemala, I think), I don´t think she wrote and told me about Steve´s death. (Harriet was a Galapagos Tortoise taken by Charles Darwin to England, but the climate in England didn´t suit Harriot (who would have thought it!?), so after a while they took her to Brisbane to live. The story goes that she roamed freely in the Brisbane City Botanical Gardens, but people aren´t very responsible and so it was eventually decided it would be better that she went to a zoo. And so, Harriet was moved to Australia Zoo.... the one Steve Irwin (Crocodile Hunter) owned. Her favourite food was hibiscus flowers.)

In the Charles Darwin Research centre, ne and a big Tortoise.

Me being a tortoise.

One in the wild.

Sea Lions in the Galapagos Islands

Galapagos Islands
April 20 - 30, 2010

Well, I loved the Galapagos, but most of all I loved the Sea Lions. These are Galapagos Sea Lions, I also saw Fur Sea Lions there (which I read a book calling them Fur Seals, but techinically they are Sea Lions, and the book did say this. Our Galapagos guide said they were Fur Sea Lions, so I´m calling them that.)

The excitement of swimming with Sea Lions still hasn´t dulled in my mind. Be sure to read my hand written post!

My first afternoon I thought I would take a seat at the sea front and take in the scene, but the seat was taken.

Then I took a stroll and where they bring in the catch and sell it, I found the sea lions "helping out". Still, the fisherman seemed good natured about it.

Sometimes the sea lions were right in the middle of the path where you wanted to walk. They didn´t much mind any inconvenience caused.

Take a swim, laze on the beach. The reason while you can get so close to the sea lions, and other animals in the Galapagos, is that the Galapagos never had any land based predators to threaten them, and so they never learnt to be afraid on land, they also evolved to suit this. This threat is changing with feral cats now a problem and I believe there are also dogs on the islands.