Today we went on a challenging hike first in the morning.

A true hike and not just a beach walk along a trail.

Our mission was to not only explore the beautiful scenery.

But to explore and seek out the famous boobies in Galapagos. Believe it or not, these rocky trails are better for flexible water shoes compared to stiff and thick hiking boots.

After some climbing to the higher elevations, we found our first red footed boobie.

and once we reached the plateau, we found a blue footed boobie.

Believe it or not, they are very different. The red footed are very independent and do not care for the young. The blue footed boobie create a circle that the young must stay within…and if they leave, they are no longer welcome and no longer cared for. The red have only 1egg and the blue always have 2.

Here is what they look like when they are less than 1 year old and cannot fly yet and stay with their parents. The male in the blue footed boobie is the only one that stays with the young.

This was a funny, but also sad, when two boobies had just came back with a fish and a frigate (bird) flew right in and took away their recent catch.