Sea Lion Pup with Mom

Galapagos Sea Lions at Punta Espinosa, Fernandina Island. This newborn could not have been more than a day old--the placenta was still lying next to the mother. View it large to better see the reflections in their eyes. Here's an adult sea lion in a landscape (two years later).

Other sights that day included flightless cormorants (also here, four years later). They are descended from mainland birds which made it to the Galapagos and then over time lost the ability to fly--in the island environment, with no predators, it was less important for them to fly than to swim (they feed on fish)--they have developed large feet to assist with that.

Archived 2011-10