Wildlife on the Galápagos

Without any natural predators giant tortoises can be found in the wild on several of the Galápagos Islands.

Marine iguanas – also endemic to the Galápagos – heating up in the sun

A juvenile frigate bird getting fed by his mother



The colourful land iguanas most likely made it to the Galápagos on logs eight million years ago.

A baby Galápagos sea lion enjoying the sunset with his mother


A juvenile blue footed booby waiting for food

If you can live for up to 200 years like this giant tortoise, there is no hurry in life.

The abundance of food this year does not pass unnoticed when looking at land iguanas.

A male frigate bird trying to find a partner before the sun goes down

Evening choreography with these frigate birds

A curious juvenile frigate bird

For 90% of their lives, marine iguanas will be warming up on land before heading into the water to feed

A Galápagos sea lion shaking off some sand

Crabs can be found everywhere along the shore

This marine iguana has clearly discovered how delicious sand can be.

This lizard might be tiny, but he thinks he's king of the Galápagos.

Without any predators, the Galápagos land iguana lost its ability over the years to climb trees.

A blue heron looking for prey

Despite a complete absence of natural predators, giant tortoises can be shy.

Just like anywhere else in the world spiders have made it to the Galápagos.

Snakes are rare on the islands, but they can be found such as this Galápagos racer.

A group of blue footed boobies looking for some fish

Crabs eat everything that comes before them, even their own kin.

This blue footed booby showing another fellow that this is his domain

It is remarkable how these lizards can survive even without a tail.