Isla Santa Catalina, Sea of Cortez, Baja California
Towards the end of a full first day in the Sea of Cortez, many of us were hiking up an isolated arroyo on Isla Santa Catalina. Throughout the day we had been witness to the marine wildlife and dramatic scenery common to the area. Two humpback whales entertained us before breakfast, a fin whale after breakfast and by lunch time two more humpbacks and a pod of bow-riding bottlenose dolphins had joined our list of experiences.
As big and amazing as those experiences were, in truth there are other places in the world where one might trade the scenery and keep the marine mammals. That is to say that humpback whales, fin whales and bottlenose dolphins are all species that have extensive world-wide distributions. You might say they are fantastic, but not necessarily unique to the Sea of Cortez.
On the other hand, the Santa Catalina Island side-blotched lizard (Uta squamata) (pictured), is found only in Baja California on a desert island where we walked today. Nowhere else will you see its emerald green tail and stars-in-the-night body color glowing in the late afternoon sun. As cool as whales are, now that is cool.
Towards the end of a full first day in the Sea of Cortez, many of us were hiking up an isolated arroyo on Isla Santa Catalina. Throughout the day we had been witness to the marine wildlife and dramatic scenery common to the area. Two humpback whales entertained us before breakfast, a fin whale after breakfast and by lunch time two more humpbacks and a pod of bow-riding bottlenose dolphins had joined our list of experiences.
As big and amazing as those experiences were, in truth there are other places in the world where one might trade the scenery and keep the marine mammals. That is to say that humpback whales, fin whales and bottlenose dolphins are all species that have extensive world-wide distributions. You might say they are fantastic, but not necessarily unique to the Sea of Cortez.
On the other hand, the Santa Catalina Island side-blotched lizard (Uta squamata) (pictured), is found only in Baja California on a desert island where we walked today. Nowhere else will you see its emerald green tail and stars-in-the-night body color glowing in the late afternoon sun. As cool as whales are, now that is cool.
