In order to reach the Nazca and Red-Footed Boobies, we first had to
climb Prince Philip’s steps, a rather steep climb up lava steps to a cliff
top. Thank goodness for the handrails,
albeit old and rather haphazard! In any
event once we reached the top of the cliff where we first spotted the Nazca
boobies.
Nazca Boobie Walking
The coloring on these boobies is just so perfect! And, you can see they really aren’t afraid of
us as this little one comes strolling practically right up to me. We aren’t to approach them, but sometimes
they approach us. Nazca boobies tend to
nest close to the ground, so we did walk around them rather carefully, as it
was nest building time while we were there.
Young Nazca Boobie
During our hike, we came across this very young Nazca boobie. As you can see, his coloring hasn’t yet fully
developed, so he appears a bit ragamuffin.
Still, his very frank appraisal of our presence there was almost a bit
unnerving. I don’t know that I’ve had
birds meet my gaze quite so directly before!
I was to learn this is something that can often be expected with the
boobies!
Red-Footed Boobie in Tree
The other type of boobie that we found on this island was the
Red-Footed Boobie. This was my first
sighting of one. Their beak looks a bit
bluish, doesn’t it? Well, at times it
can be almost vivid, in the right light!
Red-Footed Boobie Head Shot
See what I mean? These
boobies tend to nest and hang out in the trees, as you can see. And, they fly much better than their cousins,
the Nazca boobies, at least based upon what I saw.
Red-Footed Boobie in flight
I really like this shot, even if it’s technically not the greatest.
He’s just taking off, but I love the feeling of him getting ready to glide thru
the air.
Red-Footed Boobie in flight (2)
Here’s another fun shot of a boobie flying. It looks like he was gathering twigs, etc.,
for the nest.
Red
Here’s another of those frank stares – I really love the lack of
fear around people.
Enjoy!
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