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Saturday February 16/13
Back to the highlands of
Today’s photos are mostly of
the Giant Tortoises (Tortugas) in the wild. Also
enjoy Lava Tubes, collapsed Lava Domes, and some Finches.
That was the day's
excitement, Cheers, Al  |
| We came back to the centre island, then explored the middle of it |
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| The helmof the speedboat that brought us back |
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| The highlands of Santa Cruz are home to these big fellas |
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| The Giant Tortoises are abundant up here |
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| They munch on anything green |
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| and of course move very slowly |
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| mostly in a straight line |
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| Males have a long tail which includes their penis |
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| He won't win any 100 yard dashes |
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| Lava Tube see http://trekity.com/leg-lava-tubes-galapagos-ecuador/ |
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| Lava Tube, see http://www.galapagos-islands-tourguide.com/galapagos-lava-tubes.html |
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| Lunch is everywhere they travel |
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| Huge Collapsed Lava Dome, see the man on the upper right |
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| Unwanted non-endemic vegetation is taking over |
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| This is basically the same as a volcano crater, see http://www.dijitalimaj.com/alamyDetail.aspx?img={1CDE9583-7B6B-4945-BC88-5985D98A4333} |
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| There were two, very close together up here |
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| The south end of a tortoise going north |
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| Guides can tell the direction they are going by the point on their poop |
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| They have right-of-way on the trails and roads of course |
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| Mugging for the camera |
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| He is a very pretty specimen |
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| The Sony allowed me to get some good close-ups |
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| A visiting fat Finch |
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| Our guide was surprised that I got such good shots |
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| Meanwhile he is still on the move |
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| This guy posed for a bit |
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| Another Finch joined the party |
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| They pre-date the dinosaurs |
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| They hiss because they expell air from their lungs when they retract |
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| Another tasty morsel in sight |
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| Paul McFarling, our guide, gives some size perspective |
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| An empty tortoise shell |
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| A poster at this trading post |
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| Great carvings for sale |
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| This carving was huge and only $300 |
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| Great assortment of beautiful work for sale |
