Isla de la Plata (or Silver Island), is a small island off the coast northwest of Ecuador and is part of a National Park. The island came by it’s name because this is where Sir Francis Drake had buried his treasure, but others say that it refers to the guano, or bird droppings, that cover the rocks and then shine in the sun and moon light, giving a silvery glow. We stopped on our way to Ecuador and were given a tour of the island by the Park Rangers.
We now know what a Blue-footed Booby
looks like and we know what their eggs and their young look like. We had a fantastic close up look at dozens of
pairs with their young as we walked along the island. They are really curious looking birds. So, as a result, I have lots and lots of
photos of these guys.
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| A young Albatross |
We also had the chance to see a baby
albatross. What a sight that was. They are very large birds and the young
chicks are also very large – and clumsy.
I know very little about these birds so I had to look them up and found
some good information on the National Geographic website. The adults have a wingspan of up to 11 feet
(3.4 meters) They drink salt water and can glide for hours without rest or even
flapping their wings thanks to their huge wingspan. They live to about 50 years of age and gather
only to breed.
Then we took a walk along the beach and saw a lot
of red crabs and as this is a Nature Reserve, they also take care of the turtles
that are laying their eggs on the shore.
It was a great day, a chance to stretch our legs
after 5 days at sea and a good break and a quiet night at anchor before we set off again for the next 4
days of the journey to Salinas, Ecuador.
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