Santa Cruz is the second largest island of the Galapagos Archipelago and the economic capital, where the two most famous institutions are located: the Galapagos National Park Headquarters and the Charles Darwin Research Station. In the morning, we visited the Fausto Llerena Breeding Center, where we saw tortoises in a variety of life stages, from baby to adult. In the afternoon, we went to the highlands to search Galapagos giant tortoises in the wild. Both visits are very important to a full understanding of the natural behavior of these animals.
5/29/2025
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National Geographic Gemini
Genovesa Island
Genovesa is considered one of the Galapagos crown jewels, and today it was showing off all of its splendor. Immediately after breakfast we put on our sturdy shoes and set out to explore Prince Philip’s Steps. This area is known for opportunities to observe not only large colonies of nesting Nazca and red-footed boobies, but maybe, just maybe, the short-eared owl which exhibits diurnal behavior on this island. After this walk we got ready for a dip in the Pacific Ocean and snorkeling along the inner coast of this caldera. The afternoon was equally amazing as we disembarked to explore Darwin Bay, along a short and easy trail that was packed with wildlife. Here we observed not only nesting frigatebirds, red-footed boobies, and Nazca boobies, but also a few yellow-crowned night herons. It was another incredible afternoon in the Galapagos Islands.
