North Seymour Island was lifted from the ocean floor by a seismic
event, and its origins as a seabed give the
island its low, flat profile. Cliffs only
a few meters high form the shoreline, where
swallow-tailed gulls sit perched in ledges.
A tiny forest of silver-grey Palo Santo trees
stand just above the landing, usually without
leaves, waiting for the rain to bring them
into bloom.
This island is teaming with life! You might
have to give way to a passing sea lion or
marine iguana; blue-footed booby nests sit
beside the trail where mating pairs perform
their courtship dance. Further along, the
rocky shore displays white sand, and large
flocks of pelicans mass for a dive-bomb feeding
frenzy, rendering a tableau for us from ages
long past. The trail turns inland to reveal
the largest nesting site in the Galapagos
of the "magnificent frigate bird."
These huge, dark acrobats have two-meter
wingspans, and males, with puffed up scarlet
throat sacks, sit precariously perched in
low bushes to watch over their equally large
chicks.