Today we arrived to Genovesa. This is populated by many, many birds, to the point that it is known as “Birds Island”. These birds and other species are not intimidated by the presence of humans and the fear barrier between them and us barely exists. Early in the morning we started with kayaking. It was a great way for those interested in a pre-breakfast outing to enjoy the islands. After breakfast we landed on Darwin’s Bay beach, where there is an area littered by broken pieces of coral and where our trail is located. We did not have to wait too long before finding birds, especially the highlight of today’s visit, the red-footed boobies. We also found frigate birds as they started their courtship behavior. The males were inflating their pouches and screaming their love out of their lungs! After an active morning many of us needed to refresh and so we relished this last chance to snorkel in these waters. Our adventure was full of big animals like the rays and turtles. We even had the chance to see some elusive sharks.
After lunch and a short siesta we visited Prince Phillip’s Steps. This location offers a very different terrain from the one in the morning. In this area we found a rocky trail tangled with a net of lava tunnels, where storm petrels nest and in it we succeeded in finding the short-eared owl, the top of the food chain in this land. It killed its prey in front of our surprised eyes and removed the feathers from its victim with a hungry grin.
This was our last day and as we leave these waters, we kiss goodbye to paradise…
