Tuesday, 28 August 2018
Galapagos Day 4
El Chato Ranch has it all -- tortoises galore and lava tubes. Who could ask for more? We even got to use rubber boots to wander through the wet grass and "garua" ( mist/drizzle).
Galapagos Day 4
El Chato Ranch has it all -- tortoises galore and lava tubes. Who could ask for more? We even got to use rubber boots to wander through the wet grass and "garua" ( mist/drizzle).
Woodpecker Finch
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| Before we even got to the tortoises, we saw an elusive woodpecker finch, notable for its ability to use a tool (a cactus spine) to fish for termites in branches and logs. |
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| Woodpecker finch attacking a tree branch. |
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| Another view of the woodpecker finch. |
Lava Tunnel (Lava Tube)
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| We got to walk through about 100 m of a lava tube. |
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| Wall of the lava tunnel. |
Tortoises
This is what we came to see -- Galapagos tortoises "up close and personal". |
| As we walked by this algae-covered pond, we remarked that the rocks (yellow arrow) looked like hippos. |
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| But they weren't rocks, they were Galapagos giant tortoises. |
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| A third tortoise in the pond. |
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| Enjoying the pond scum. |
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| The rules say you can't get any closer than 2 m (6 ft) from any wildlife in the Galapagos. And it's better to approach a tortoise from the rear. (It can't see you!) |
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| I tried clapping to to get the tortoise to raise his head. No success! |
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| A ground finch alights on the tortoise's back. |
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| I could hear the tortoise chewing the vegetation. |
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