Is it a snake? Or is it a lizard? or is it a snalizard? Neither a snake nor a lizard, it is a snake eating a lizard! It is not a poem, it is not a joke, it is just what we saw during our walk.

Galapagos snakes have always received little attention. Their first mention was by the English pirate William Dampier in 1684. Darwin's only comment was that they were harmless. In 1912 Van Denburgh was the first to note the existence of several recognizable populations.

Robert A. Thomas wrote in 1997 about four species found in the Galapagos, one of which, the Alsophis biseralis, has three subspecies. Their relationships to mainland and West Indian species indicate that there have been at least three invasions.

We saw the Western Galapagos Racer, or Alsophis biseralis occidentalis, the subspecies found on Fernandina and Isabela Islands. Its length was at least 90 cm, and after swallowing a whole lava lizard it will probably have to take a long siesta.

So we had an exciting day, with mammals, fish, reptiles, birds. Many endemic, all special.