Española is invaded with wildlife. From the jetty to the very end, there is not one spot without an animal on it. If it's not a booby it might be a sea lion, if it's not a sea lion it might a lava lizard, if it's not a lava lizard it might be a mocking bird, if it's not a mocking bird it might be an iguana. But everywhere you look there is something!
We walked for three hours admiring all the beauty the island offers. Española is the oldest island, with a few endemic species. This is probably what grasps everyone's interest; to learn that on such a small island there is a high rate of endemism. Endemic to Española are the mocking birds, lava lizards and the waved albatross, which breeds here. It is also here where we find the most colorful marine iguanas.
These picturesque reptiles steal everyone's attention because of their exquisite colors (red and green). They are so bright, that one of our guests said, "They are dressed up for Christmas". Towards the end of the cool season these creatures become very bright. The males develop this astounding coloration to attract the females. The bright colors on the marine iguana (Amblyrhynchus cristatus) is due to pigment cells called chromatophores, which are arranged to give the coloration and patterning on them. These cells are situated on the outer region of the dermis. They may be stacked up at various levels by expansion or shrinking of the pigment in the cells; the color and occasionally the patterning can be changed. The action may be controlled by the nerves or by hormones. It is therefore easy to understand that is it during the mating season that the males become this colorful. Then again, with a face like that they need other ways to attract the females. Oops! I hope they don't feel offended.
