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Annual Happenings

Home » Ecuador » Galapagos Islands Activities and Attractions » Annual Happenings

January
• Warm marine currents arrive
• Land birds start nesting
• On Española the adult male marine iguanas become brightly colored
• The green sea turtle arrives to the beaches of Galapagos to lay their eggs
• Land iguanas begin reproductive cycles on Isabela
• Water and air temperatures rise and stay warm until June
• Ideal time for snorkeling

February
• On Floreana flamingos start nesting
• White-cheeked pintails start their breeding season
• Masked boobies on Española are at the end of their nesting season
• Marine iguanas nest on Santa Cruz
• Highest water temperatures reach 77°F and remain until April
• Galapagos dove’s nesting season reaches its peak

March
• Water temperatures reach their max
• Sporadic tropical rains and intense sun. Air temperature reach up to 86°F
• Marine iguanas nest in Fernandina
• March 21, the summer equinox signals begin
• The waved albatross arrive to Española

April
• Massive arrival of waved albatross to Española; Their courtship starts
• Hatching season ends for giant tortoises
• Green sea turtles’ eggs begin to hatch
• Land iguanas hatch on Isabela

May
• North Seymour’s blue-footed boobies begin their courtship
• Sea turtles are still hatching on Gardner Bay, Punta Cormorant and Puerto Egas
• Most of the marine iguanas’ eggs hatch from nests on Santa Cruz
• Palo Santo trees begin to shed their foliage
• Albatross on Española start laying their eggs
• Band rumped storm petrels begin their first nesting period

June
• Beginning of the dry season
• Giant tortoises migrate from highlands to lowlands for suitable nesting places
• Beginning of the nesting season of giant tortoises

July
• Sea birds are active, especially blue- footed boobies on Española
• Flightless cormorants court and nest on Fernandina
• It’s possible to find oystercatchers nesting on Puerto Egas, Santiago
• Lava lizards initiate mating rituals until November
• Whales are more likely to be observed, especially off the Western coast of Isabela

August
• The Galapagos hawks court on Española and Santiago
• Masked boobies and swallow tailed gulls nest on Genovesa
• Temperature of the ocean descends to 64°F, which obviously varies according to the geographic zones among the islands
• Migrant shore birds start to arrive, and stay on the islands until March
• Giant tortoises return to the highlands of Santa Cruz

September
• Peak of the dry season
• The air temperature reaches its lowest - 66°F
• Penguins demonstrate remarkable activity on Bartolomé until December
• Sea lions are very active, especially in the western and central areas of the Archipelago
• Most species of marine birds remain active at their nesting sites

October
• Lava herons nest until March.
• The Galapagos fur seal begin their mating period
• Boobies raise their chicks on Española
• Giant tortoises still lay their eggs

November
• Sea lion pups are born
• Sea lions are sexually active on the Eastern part of the Archipelago
• Breeding season of brown noddies

December
• Hatching of the giant tortoise’s eggs begin and lasts until April
• Green sea turtles display their mating behavior
• The warm season begins and all of the plants of the dry zone produce leaves
• Galapagos “turns green”
• The first young albatross fled

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