Category Archives: Photography

Islas Ballestas, Galápagos on the Cheap — Part 6


Ballestas color

Ballestas color

Here is another bird we saw on our excursion to Islas Ballestas.  It’s the Inca tern, (the smaller charcoal-colored birds to the left of the larger Peruvian booby) and it sports a stunning red bill, orange feet, and delicate white and yellow designs on its head.

The beautiful red bills of the Inca tern

The beautiful red bills of the Inca tern

Here we have a pair of South American sea lions sunning themselves:

Sunning

Sunning

While these ladies more enjoyed the shade:

Lying in the shade

Lying in the shade

In this shot we have a number of mother sea lions, many squirming pups, and a huge male near the center of the image:

The nursery

The nursery

And finally for today one last image of the ubiquitous Peruvian booby:

More Peruvian boobies

More Peruvian boobies

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Islas Ballestas, Galápagos on the Cheap — Part 5


Peruvian boobies

Peruvian boobies

Yes, we saw much more than Peruvian boobies and South American sea lions on our visit to Islas Ballestas.  Here, for instance, are a pair of Humboldt penguins crashing a Pervian booby party:

A pair of Humboldt Penguins crashing the party

A pair of Humboldt Penguins crashing the party

We also got a good view of this colorful little guy, a red rock crab, also known as a Sally Lightfoot (grapsus grapsus):

Red rock crab, a.k.a., Sally Lightfoot crab

Sally Lightfoot meandering amongst the mollusks

Another look at the nursery:

Sea lion moms and their pups

Sea lion moms and their pups

More Peruvian boobies:

Peruvian boobies

Peruvian boobies

And two sea lions enjoying a break:

South American sea lions

South American sea lions

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Islas Ballestas, Galápagos on the Cheap — Part 4


Natural Bridge

Natural Bridge

Entire cliffs on Islas Ballestas were covered in birds.  Here are more of the ever-present Peruvian boobies demonstrating what I mean:

A Cliff of Birds

A Cliff of Birds

Meanwhile Islas Ballestas beaches were crowded with mother sea lions and their army of pups (note the gigantic male on the left side of the photo):

Babies on the Beach

Babies on the Beach

Lest you think that the above photo was merely a tight cropping that misrepresents the numbers, here’s another view:

Pups and Moms

Pups and Moms

Here are some females enjoying some quiet time alone:

Conserving Energy

Conserving Energy

And more Peruvian boobies:

More Guano Factories at Work

More Guano Factories at Work

Oddly, the sea lions were just as likely to rest on hard rock as they were on gentle sand:

Islas Ballestas  3-18-2015 10-53-32 AM

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