This morning, I joined a small group of Peace River Auduboners for a trip north to Highlands Hammock State Park.  We met at the Winn-Dixie on US17 at 7:00 and car pooled north on US 17, east on SR66, then turn left on CR 635, arriving at the Park about 8:30.  There is a $4 entrance fee per vehicle.

We walked three different trails during the morning: Alexander Blair Big Oak Trail, Cypress Trail (swamp completely dried up), and the Fern Garden Trail. Birds were not very plentiful.  We only saw 15 species, which included Great-crested Flycatchers, Red-shouldered Hawk, Swallow-tailed Kite, Northern Parulas, Tufted Titmouse, Red-eyed and White-eyed Vireos, a Pileated Woodpecker, and several Downy and Red-bellied Woodpeckers. 

Although not birdy, the Park featured many old and tall Bald Cypress trees, Sabal Palms, and Live Oaks.  One Oak tree was estimated to be a 1000 years old.  Along the Fern Garden Trail, we saw a bunch of Honeybees tending to their honeycomb.  The trails are well maintained and quite shady.  After a quick lunch, a number of our group went on a tram ride through the Park.

During the last part of May, I had the good fortune to travel with a group of amateur photographers to Ecuador and the Galapagos Islands.  We flew from Miami to Quito on Wednesday, May 20, and over-nighted in Quito.  On Thursday morning, a bus transported us to the Tandayapa Birding Lodge, about a 2-hour drive northwest of Quito. 

The focus of our trip to the Lodge was to photograph hummingbirds.  The group leader had prepared two setups, each with a camera/lens, six flashes, and an artificial background.  We each had several turns using a setup, which enabled us to photograph hummingbirds in flight, freezing their wing motion.  When not using a setup, we walked around the lodge shooting hummingbirds with handheld cameras and a flash.  There were feeders positioned around the Lodge that attracted tens, if not hundreds, of hummingbirds.  During our stay, we also did a side trip to a restaurant in Mindo Loma that also had feeders set up to attract hummingbirds.

Following is a list of hummingbirds (14 species) and other birds seen in the area:

After an overnight stay in Quito, early Sunday morning our group took a flight from Quito to Guayaquil and then to Baltra, one of the Galapagos Islands.  We were transported by bus to a dock, where we boarded two pangas (zodiacs), 8 people in each, which took us out to the Queen Beatriz VI, a brand new 11-meter x 30-meter catamaran, just completed in January of this year.  It had eight spacious passenger cabins each with a private toilet and shower.  What a beautiful ship!

After a nice lunch, we boarded the pangas again and cruised along the shoreline of Black Turtle Cove, a tidal lagoon on the north coast of Santa Cruz.  Wildlife seen included Frigatebirds, Blue-footed Boobies, Common (Brown) Noddys, ground finches, Brown Pelicans, Lava Herons, Sally Lightfoot Crabs, and Mustard (Golden) Rays.

During the night, which was routine for the trip, the Captain motored to another location while we slept (or tried to sleep).  The ship motored south along the east side of Santa Cruz Island to Floreana Island.  After breakfast, we boarded the pangas and motored to Post Office Bay along the north coast of the Island.  The main feature at this location is a big wooden barrel that holds mail for the world.  You can place an unstamped letter in the barrel and it eventually will arrive at its destination.  Other people coming to the barrel will pickup some of the letters and mail them when they get to a real post office.

We then walked along the beach and eventually got into our wet suits and did some snorkeling.  In the afternoon, a few people went snorkeling at Devil’s Crown, a partially exposed cone of an extinct volcano.  Another group of people went for a panga ride around the rocks and observed the local wildlife and birds.  Several Red-billed Tropicbirds were seen in this area.  Later, we rode the pangas and made a wet landing at Punta Cormoran, a small lava cone on the tip of Floreanna.  Five Flamingoes were observed wading the water within the cone.

Birds seen today included:

Tuesday morning, we woke to find ourselves anchored off the northern coast of Espanola (Hood) Island.  After breakfast, we rode the pangas into Gardner Bay for a wet landing.  We were greeted by sea lions, marine iguanas and the Hood mockingbirds.  Although the same race, the Hood iguanas are the largest of the marine iguanas and has very distinct coloring with dark red on its sides and a greenish tinge along its ridged back.  The lava lizards are also unique to this island.  They are the largest in the islands and have the shortest, thickest tail.  The female has red under her chin and at the base of her tail.  The male is speckled black, yellow, and green.  The Hood mockingbird is endemic to this island.  Part of our group went snorkeling while others explored the beach.

After lunch, we made a dry landing at Punta Suarez.  The path we walked turned out to be the most difficult of our trip, but also the most rewarding.  Much of the trail was quite rocky and walking sticks proved to be very useful.  We passed through a Nazca Booby nesting area, a Blue-footed Booby nesting area, and finally the nesting area for the Waved Albatross.  This is the only place in the world where the Waved Albatross nests.  On the way back we passed a blowhole that shoots a plume of spray about 50 feet into the air.

Birds seen today include:

Hood Mockingbird               Small Ground Finch
American Oystercatcher      Medium Ground Finch
Ruddy Turnstone                Large Cactus Finch
Galapagos Dove                 Yellow Warbler
Frigatebirds                       Galapagos Hawk
Blue-footed Boobies            Yellow-crowned Night-Heron
Nazca Boobies                   Brown Pelican
Waved Albatross                Swallow-tailed Gull
Red-billed Tropicbird            Elliot’s Storm-Petrel

Today, Wednesday, was our day to see the Giant Tortoises and some Land Iguanas.  Overnight we had traveled to the southern coast of Santa Cruz and anchored in the harbor of Puerto Aroya.  This small town has a population of about 18,000 people.  The headquarters of the Galapagos National Park Service and the Charles Darwin Research Station are located here.  We made a dry landing at the Park Service dock and walked to the Research Station, where we walked through the tortoise rearing and observation areas.  Lonesome George, the last of his species from the island of Pinzon, is spending his remaining days here.  There is also a small compound where Land Iguanas are kept.

In the afternoon we took a bus up into an area known as the Highlands.  Here we saw Giant Tortoises and Land Iguanas in the wild.  Other wildlife observed in this area included Galapagos Mockingbirds, Yellow Warblers, Finches, Smooth-billed Anis, Cattle Egrets, and a White-cheeked Pintail.

On Thursday morning, we were anchored off the northwest coast of Santa Cruz.  After breakfast, we boarded the zodiacs and headed to a relatively new visitor’s site, known as Dragon Hill.  Here we saw our primary objective, Land Iguanas.  This area is a nesting site for iguanas, many of which have been repatriated by the Charles Darwin Research Station.  After returning to the ship, the Captain motored to the small island of Rabida, about a two-hour ride.  After lunch, we again boarded the zodiacs and rode along the rocky coast looking for Fur Seals, of which we saw two.  We then did a wet landing on a reddish-colored beach.  Some of the group went snorkeling and the rest of us walked the beach, taking pictures of the sea lions and blue-footed boobies diving off shore.  Other wildlife seen today included Brown Pelicans, Lava Heron, Galapagos Mockingbird, Black-necked Stilts, White-cheeked Pintail, Small & Medium Ground Finches, Frigatebirds, lava lizards, and marine iguanas.

On Friday morning, we found ourselves anchored in Sullivan Bay along the northeast coast Santiago Island, not to far from Bartolome Island.  After breakfast, we took a zodiac ride along the rocky coast of Santiago, looking for the Galapagos Pelican.  We saw two on the rocks and five in the water.  We then made a dry landing on Santiago Island and spent 45 minutes walking a lava field from a 1897 eruption.  After the walk, we went snorkeling in a small cove with a sandy beach.  Birds seen this morning included: Frigatebirds, Blue-footed Boobies, a Lava Heron, Galapagos Hawk, Wandering Tattler, Brown Pelicans, and a Yellow Warbler

During the lunch hour, the Captain moved the ship closer to Bartolome, which is famous for a rock formation known as the Pinnacle Rock.  In the late afternoon, we made a dry landing and hiked up the summit trail to the top of an extinct volcano cone.  The trail is 600 meters long and consists of a series of wooden pathways and stairs (377 steps) that make it easier to navigate to the top.  From the top, you can see the islands of Santiago, Santa Cruz, Baltra, Seymour Norte, and a Rabida.

During the early hours of Saturday morning, the Captain motored to Plaza Sur (South Plaza).  It is the southern most of a pair of crescent-shaped islands not far from the east coast of Santa Cruz.  This island has one of the largest populations of Land Iguanas in the Galapagos.  After breakfast, we rode the zodiacs to the island and made a dry landing.  We were greeted by Sea Lions and a few Marine Iguanas.  We hiked the rocky trail that circumnavigated the island.  In addition to Land Iguanas, we saw Frigatebirds, Pelicans, Shearwaters, Red-billed Tropicbirds, Swallow-tailed Kites, Brown Noddys, Blue-footed Boobies, Yellow Warblers, and some Finches.

After returning to the ship (10 am), the Captain motored to Santa Fe Island, arriving there about noon.  The featured attraction on this island is a Land Iguana that is unique to this island.  After lunch, we rode the zodiacs to the beach, where we made a wet landing.  As usual, we were greeted by Sea Lions lolling on the beach.  We hiked the main trail, which took us to the area with the Iguanas.  Other wildlife seen on this excursion included a Hawk, Brown Pelicans, Finches, Doves, and Lava Lizards.

During the wee hours of Sunday morning, our last day in the Galapagos, the Captain motored the ship to Seymour Notre, just north of Baltra.  We boarded the zodiacs at 6:30 (before breakfast) for a ride to and a dry landing on the island.  This island features large nesting colonies of Blue-footed Boobies and Frigatebirds, both Great and Magnificent.  We were fortunate to see the birds in various phases of nesting, such as, egg incubation and raising chicks.  We returned to the ship at 8:30 for breakfast and packing.  By 10 am, we were riding the zodiacs for the last time, returning to Baltra, where we would catch a flight to Quito.  A wonderful experience in the Galapagos Islands.