GALAPAGOS - The Land Birds

Vermilion Flycatcher
The male vermilion flycatcher is a stunning red colour and is certainly one of the islands’ most colourful characters. It is commonly seen sitting on fences in the highlands regions of Santa Cruz.  As with other flycatchers, it will sit on a favourite perch and periodically launch into a circular flight to capture an insect and then return to exactly the same spot.  The other flycatcher on the islands is the endemic Galapagos flycatcher.  It is a light brown colour with a slightly yellowish chest and, although common, is much harder to identify.

Yellow Warbler
Another colourful bird is the bright yellow warbler. This bird is not endemic and may be found anywhere from Alaska to Peru. The male has thin red streaks on its chest and a red cap. It is common throughout the Galapagos Islands.

Finch
There are 13 species of Darwin’s finches on the Galapagos Islands. They are all rather small dull brown sparrow-like birds.  They may not seem the most glamorous inhabitants of the islands but it was these birds which Darwin chose to study in detail and which led most directly to the development of his theory of evolution. The varieties include several species of ground finch, tree finch, woodpecker finch, warbler finch and vegetarian finch.  The finches are still evolving and unless you have studied these birds you will probably find it difficult to correctly identify all the species.

Mockingbird
The mockingbirds are extremely tame and very curious birds – they will happily approach tourists on the beach to see whether there is any food or water. You should not feed the birds as this would make them become dependent on such service. There are four different species of mockingbird on the islands – three of these are specific to individual islands and one species may be found all over the islands.

Short-Eared Owl
There are three raptor species to be found on the Galapagos Islands – the barn owl, the Galapagos hawk and the short-eared owl. The short-eared owl can often be seen on Genovesa (Tower) Island where it hunts on foot among the colonies of storm petrels. It will wait at the entrance to a storm petrels burrow and will lunge with its claws when it hears a bird within reach.   As its name implies, its ears are small and hard to see.

Galapagos Dove
The small Galapagos dove is endemic to the islands and is found in the more arid parts of the main islands.  A process of evolution on Genovesa Island has softened the spines of cactus plants and thereby allowed the Galapagos dove access to pollinate the flowers.  This has occurred due to the lack of bees that would normally perform this function.