Day 13 - Galapagos Sea Lions



We're switching up the blog again, but instead of Blue-footed Boobies were talking about the Galapagos Sea Lions. These funny animals have a huge personality and are endemic to the Galapagos islands (vocab word from the last post, can you remember what it means?). You can find these animals all over San Cristobal: at the sandy beaches, the rocky beaches, the piers, the streets, we even saw one jump into a fisherman's boat! Every morning we get to wake up to the screams and screeches of the baby sea lions asking for milk from their mothers. 

These wonderful animals have such friendly personalities, but this can put the sea lions, and humans, in a vulnerable position. Sea lions have become so accustomed to the presence of humans that they are not afraid of getting close to them. Some tourists will attempt to touch these animals, and even put their babies on them. This can lead to transmission of diseases, or to a sea lion bite. Ouch! They may look cute, but they do not appreciate humans touching them. We even saw a sea lion chase a lady!

Currently these animals are facing a scary situation, which is El Nino. El Nino is a weather phenomena that is characterized by unusually warm, nutrient-poor, water. The change in water temperature causes their food source to migrate to different areas, or can lead to death of fish populations. This is very detrimental to the population of sea lions since they will be forced to hunt for fish in deeper waters. Many sea lions will starve, and others will run into killer whales, or sharks, in this deep water. 

The Galapagos community has a enormous appreciation for their sea lions. The university and research teams on the islands are trying everything to protect these animals. Without sea lions the Galapagos wouldn't be the same. 

- Cole and Diego


Comments

  1. AnonymousJuly 23, 2023 at 5:42 AM

    Great photos!

    ReplyDelete
  2. AnonymousJuly 23, 2023 at 8:08 AM

    Such an informative post and I’m really enjoying the new format! Great job Cole and Diego!!!! You are both honing in on you photography of nature too….awesome pictures!!!!

    ReplyDelete
  3. AnonymousJuly 23, 2023 at 8:09 AM

    Beautiful sunset!!!

    ReplyDelete
  4. AnonymousJuly 23, 2023 at 8:14 AM

    Beautiful photos.

    ReplyDelete
  5. AnonymousJuly 23, 2023 at 8:30 AM

    Beautiful photos😊😊

    ReplyDelete
  6. AnonymousJuly 23, 2023 at 8:38 AM

    Great information on the seals, like the pictures also.

    ReplyDelete
  7. AnonymousJuly 23, 2023 at 1:19 PM

    Awesome pictures and very informative information. Thanks so much for sharing on your impressive new format! Be safe!

    ReplyDelete
  8. AnonymousJuly 24, 2023 at 10:00 AM

    great information on sea lions! I have experience with a bite and they don't feel good!

    ReplyDelete
  9. AnonymousJuly 24, 2023 at 8:06 PM

    Great info can’t wait to hear more about your encounters with the wildlife!

    ReplyDelete
  10. AnonymousJuly 25, 2023 at 7:47 PM

    They certainly are not afraid to walk the streets. Hoping the tourists don’t feed them.

    ReplyDelete
  11. AnonymousJuly 26, 2023 at 7:25 AM

    🌅 ❤️

    ReplyDelete
  12. AnonymousJuly 26, 2023 at 12:27 PM

    Great pics and post!

    ReplyDelete
  13. AnonymousJuly 26, 2023 at 8:12 PM

    Sure hope the lady out paced the sea lion! Great post and love the pictures

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Day 1

Image
                  Howdy y'all, it is Diego and Cole. We just finished our first day in Ecuador, and had a great time being introduced to the culture of USFQ. We started the day by touring the beautiful campus. We learned a lot about the history of the University, and were able to see some unique attractions, such as the dragon, the tie fighter, and the PIG. The culinary school cooked up some lunch for us. It was hard to believe the amount of amazing food they had on campus. The class refreshed their knowledge on Spanish with the help of Dr. Karla. An interesting topic we learned was the Kichwa language that is native to Ecuador, Colombia, and Peru. After Spanish we crushed the One Health Ecuadorian Perspective class with Dr. Trueba. He lectured about the pathogens of nature, the dangers they cause, and how human activity amplifies them both directly and indirectly. To end the day we had a group dinner at Noe Sushi Bar, which had some incredible rolls and sashimi. Overall very succe
Read more

Day 12 - We Love Boobies

Image
Dr. M wanted us to switch up the blog, so today's post is dedicated to the one and only blue-footed boobies. One of our favorite animals to see here in the Galápagos are the boobies. They are native to the islands, but not endemic. This means you can also find these birds throughout the Gulf of California, down to Peru. However, some of the species on the island are endemic, meaning they are only found on the islands. Yesterday, when we visited Isla Lobos, we saw so many blue-footed boobies and their babies. The chicks are super fluffy and white. We were surprised to see that the babies did not yet have their blue feet. Our tour guide informed us that their feet will turn blue once they can fish on their own and eat a consistent diet of fish. This change is coincident with their sexual maturity. We even saw a dad boobie sitting on an egg, keeping it warm (see if you can find it in the picture!) This morning as we were taking surveys, we were mesmerized by the boobies as they dove i
Read more

Day 26 - Final Excursion:(:

Image
Hey everyone! Marielle and Tyler here with our final excursion blog (sad face)  Today we left the hotel around 9 AM to visit Los Gemelos and El Chato Ranch. The Gemelos are two giant sink holes formed by the collapse of volcanic chambers. They are filled with tons of greenery and vegetation, along with a variety of bird species. Sometimes, you can see the Vermillion Flycatcher - a bright, red, finch-like bird. However, they are endangered due to introduced species, such as feral cats.  Our next stop was El Chato Ranch, which is a tortoise farm, where the Galapagos Tortoises roam free in the lush greens, grazing along, and taking things one slow step at a time. The ranch is also home to many cattle, along with cattle egrets! It was so interesting watching these creatures live together peacefully. As we took a stroll through the farm, we took many pictures of the dome shaped giants, while making sure to avoid stepping in tortoise poo. We were also able to witness the underground lava cav
Read more