Galapagos field notes, v579
Page 253
Image from the Biodiversity Heritage Library. Contributed by Museum of Vertebrate Zoology, University of California, Berkeley. | www.biodiversitylibrary.org
Transcription
12 Feb Punta Suarez, Espanola (Mood) Is., Galapagos birds strong enough to lift their heads and 2 or 3 about 1/2" grown birds. All the eggs seem to be well along, and several nests had 1 egg + 1 young bird inside. The nest " is just a scrape in the gravel between the boulders, much like that of the Blue-foots. The Blue-foots on the cliffs seemed to have no young, but on the flats there were numerous 3/4 to flying (but unfledged) young birds, which the adults defended wildly. The feet of the adults are the deepest blue of the Santa Cruz Birds. The iris of the thatched Booby is a golden yellow, while the iris of the Blue-foot is a pale creamy color. Marine Iguanas are fairly numerous, but not as concentrated as at Pt. Espinosa all along this stretch. The I's are fantastically colored beasts, blackish brown overlaid with a clear deep red and turquoise on the legs and vertebral region. The I's are much duller. No signs of nesting. Much bobbing by the males, which shows about the equivalent variation of the Espinosa animals. The basic pattern appears to true to be roughly a 1 High time and is often repeated several times in sequence. The principle variation seems to be in whether a double, single, a triple bob will occur at any one stage. The iguana's seemed to be most common where the cliff was low, or where there were shelves in the cliff but I saw several on this very steep cliff hanging from