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People often ask me when the best time to visit the Galapagos Islands is. The answer, truthfully, isn’t that there really isn’t a “best” time to go. This isn’t a very satisfying answer, but it’s true; the Galapagos is one of those rare, can’t-miss, year-round destinations.
A new study led by researchers at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution suggests that Galapagos penguins may be among a handful of species that are actually benefiting from the effects of global climate change.
The lava gull is only found in the Galapagos Islands. With only 300 to 600 individuals left in the wild, it is the rarest gull in the world. It is named for its distinctive lava gray plumage, which allows it to blend in with abundant volcanic rock and sand in the Galapagos archipelago.
Sea lions are painfully slow and awkward on land and veritable super heroes underwater, as this fantastic photo of a Galapagos sea lion gliding through the water demonstrates.
It seems only fitting that one of our planet’s most ecologically unique and pristine places should also boast one of the world’s most environmentally friendly airports. In fact, since 2011, the airport on the island of Baltra has boasted the distinction of being the world’s only airport powered exclusively by renewable energy.
Tourism in the Galapagos is about to get a little greener as authorities plan to launch solar powered catamaran service between Baltra and Santa Cruz islands.
It seems like the Galapagos Islands are rarely out of the news these days for long. Earlier this month, for example, Travel + Leisure released its 2015 World’s Best Awards and the archipelago was number one in the islands category.
The illustrations below, which reimagine several islands in the Galapagos as being supported on the backs of massive sea creatures, were created by Brazil-based production studio Manipula as part of Ecuador’s Ministry of Tourism ‘All You Need is Ecuador’ campaign. There is no word on if or even how the images were used in the campaign.
Yesterday, NASA released this dramatic satellite photo of Wolf Volacano on Isabella Island. In May, it erupted for the first time in 33 years, sending volcanic gasses and ash over 50,000 feet into the sky and raising concerns for the safety of endangered pink iguanas and giant tortoises that reside on the mountain’s flanks.
The crew of the the E/V Nautilus recently visited the Galapagos Rift and had the opportunity to film some of the creatures that live near the hydrothermal vents on the seafloor there. A recently posted video includes rare footage of the bizarre and beautiful flamboyant squid worm, a species that was only discovered in 2007.
We’ve seen quite a few photos of the recent eruption of Wolf Volcano on Isabela Island. Unfortunately, volcanic eruptions, though usually dramatic and spectacular to behold in person, are notoriously difficult to capture on film.
Last week the Galapagos National Park Directorate announced that a landmark decision has been reached in a illegal fishing and shark finning case from 2011.
