GALAPAGOS - Sealions & Crabs

Sealions
Unlike true seals, sea-lions have visible ears and are able to use their flippers to raise their bodies sufficiently to ‘walk’ along the ground.  The Galapagos Islands has two particular types of sea-lion – the common sea-lion (Californian Fur Seal) and the rarer endemic Galapagos Fur Seal.

Californian Sea-Lion
These sea-lions frequent the sandy beaches of the Galapagos in huge numbers.Best viewed: Gardner Bay on Espanola (Hood) Island or Punta Egas on Santiago (James) Island.

Galapagos Fur Seal
These sealions dislike sandy beaches and choose to spend most of their time on the rocks and crevices along the bottom of the rocky shoreline cliffs.

Sally Lightfoot Crab
These large spectacular crabs are found in huge numbers all over the islands.  Their magnificent red, yellow and purple colouring makes them easy to spot around the rocky seashore.  They will eat anything they can get their claws on - from sealion placenta through to their fellow crustaceans. The crab’s remarkable agility supposedly led to its being named after a Caribbean dancer (though you might question whether comparison with a crab is a suitable compliment for a dancer).

All Photographs and Text © Stuart M Melvin