©Stephanie Scheffler
©Stephanie Scheffler
©Stephanie Scheffler
The female entered the water first while her paramour hoped along the shore to keep pace, then jumped in beside her, swimming with his right side pressed up against her left. Their necks intertwined, making heart shapes and they twirled in the water, doing pirouettes on the surface. This dance want on for several minutes, starting and stopping, leaving the water and re-entering. It was like the crowning moment from the nature documentary that the wildlife photographer waited months to capture, but it was happening in real time just a few feet from our small inflatable boat.
Punta Vicente Roja (Isabella Island)
The next morning we anchored off of the exposed Pacific side of Isabella Island. Part of the caldera of a large ancient volcano collapsed here and the ship was floating inside footprint of the original the caldera ring. Sheer walls of the remaining part of the caldera lined the island. The driver took the Zodiac inside the entrances of sea caves, enticing curious light-brown Galapagos sea lions to swim and play around the boat. Every time I thought I had seen every wonder these islands offer, the Islands would respond, “Oh yeah? Watch this.” Flightless cormorants are a species of sea bird that exists only in the Galapagos and has evolved to lose their ability to fly; their stunted wings only current function is to help them balance as they hop along rocky shores. On land or when swimming on the water’s surface they look like skinny ducks with long necks and stunning azure blue eyes. But we didn’t just get to see them up close. They literally danced for us.
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