When we think of the Galápagos, the first things to come to mind are probably iguanas, sharks, and Charles Darwin. But the islands have a rich history and there are plenty of interesting tales originating from our earth’s closest approximation to Jurassic Park.
Jurassic Park
We love an out of the way destination at DDE and the Galápagos Islands are as about as remote as you can find. Different to our usual destinations as this underwater paradise isn’t the site of a disaster leaving magnificent wrecks in its wake. Quite the opposite in fact as this real life watery wonderland is one of the foremost environments to view wildlife both topside and beneath the surface. Often compared with a modern day Jurassic Park as it even boasts dinosaurs to reinforce this reputation.
Dinosaurs
Marine iguanas are unique to the Galápagos Islands but despite their revered standing amongst the other remarkable wildlife, they haven’t had an easy ride! Even Charles Darwin described them as "hideous-looking" and "most disgusting, clumsy lizards." 🦎⠀
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But where they may be lacking in the looks department, their incredible ecological adaptations are worth noticing. Ferocious looks disguise their gentle eating habits, they only devour the green algae and leave the brown stuff alone using their blunt snouts and razor sharp teeth to scrape their favorite snack off the rocks underwater in the rough surf. Graceful and full of purpose on their underwater dives, on land these sun wallowing reptiles sneeze often to clear salt from their nostrils. ⠀
Cool currents
At many Galapagos dive sites, the currents run on the strong side. Because of these currents and the huge amount of nutrients in the water, the visibility may be low at times. But every cloud has a silver lining and the environmental factors that make diving here hard at times are the same factors that make the Galapagos one of the world’s premier locations to dive with pelagic life. Underwater, a diverse cast of creatures from sunfish and seals to iguanas and sharks, and everything else in between.
Wolf Island
Named after the German geologist, Theodor Wolf, this extinct volcano reaches 253m (780ft) above sea level and lies some 160km (100 miles) northwest of Isabela Island. Land visits are not permitted however bird life, including red-footed boobies and vampire finch, may be spotted from the boat.
Dives here include reefs and walls with most having typically medium to strong currents. Schooling pelagics are the main draw with sightings of hammerheads, white tips and Galapagos sharks at each site. During the season (May – November) whale sharks may also be seen here. Divers should also be on the lookout for the wonderful red-lipped batfish, barracudas, moray eels and dolphins!
Darwin Island
This extinct volcano reaching 165m (490ft) above sea level was named in honour of naturalist Charles Darwin. It is amongst the smallest islands within the Galapagos Archipelago and like Wolf Island, no land visits are permitted.
Perhaps the most famed dive site is “Darwin’s Arch” which provides an amazing drift dive along the wall at an average depth of just 9m. Medium to strong currents are to be expected but bring with them hammerheads, black tips, silky and Galapagos sharks – and in large numbers! Schools of jacks are a common sight, along with turtles, angelfish and moray eels. Occasional sightings of tiger sharks, manta rays and bottle nose dolphins make for a thrilling time spent here. Whale sharks may also be seen between May and November.
Holy Moly
Punta Vicente Roca - alternatively known as “The Ice Box”, due to its chilling thermoclines, this point off the northwest coast of Isabela Island offers a wall drift dive, along which mola mola, ocean sunfish, can be spotted. The occasional Port Jackson shark may also be seen as well as the endemic Camotillo (white spotted sand bass). Yet Punta Vicente Roca is not just for the larger marine life but is also a fantastic place to spot Pacific seahorses, frogfish, octopus, nudibranchs, flat worms and a variety of sponges.
Blue footed boobies.
Boobies
Not your average tits, these birds are named after their funny waddling walk. “Boobies” was taken from the Spanish word “bobo”, which translates to clumsy.
Some of these boobies can only be spotted on certain islands in the Archipelago. A DDE charter is best way to guarantee that you’ll see the red-footed, blue-footed, and Nazca boobies on the same trip.
The red footed booby (Sula sula) is the smallest and most unusual of the three types. With magnificent skill they take to the air and can cover up to 93 miles/150km and are shrewd sea hunters and can dive up to 40m/130 ft underwater.
Blue footed boobies (Sula nebouxii) are the most popular type because of their vibrant blue feet. As Elvis Presley taught us these blue suede shoes are useful in mating, the bluer they are, the more attractive the male is to the female. Coupled up with an enchanting dace that is mirrored by the female of he is successful makes for some wonderful birding while not diving.
The Nazca booby (Sula granti), the masked booby, is the largest of all three boobies in the Galapagos. With their very white plumage, black tipped feathers their orange beaks that really pop.
Red footed booby.