I IS FOR IGUANA : A-Z Challenge

Welcome to Day 9 of the A-Z Blogging Challenge. My theme is:

'Wildlife Encounters'

At first I wasn’t sure what to make of rocks littered by sneezing lizards. Sneezing lizards? Yup, they were definitely sneezing… and what sneezes! I could see stuff shooting out of their blunt snouts with no regard to the proximity of their fellows.

Now, I mentioned in my Flightless Cormorant post that the Galapagos Islands are chock-full of wonderful wildlife and that includes these Iguanas – or Marine Iguanas. And despite their rather disreputable appearance, they are nevertheless unique and wonderful creatures.

The sneezing is a result of their need to expel the salt they ingest when they’re feeding. The iguanas have developed a special nasal gland which allows them to excrete the potentially toxic salt crystals.

Only the largest iguanas are able to withstand the cold Galapagos seas long enough to actually dive underwater to feed off the seaweeds and algae. The smaller specimens simply scrape the algae off exposed rocks on the shoreline. 

Being cold blooded, all the iguanas spend a great deal of time basking on the rocks… and sneezing.

See you tomorrow – I’m heading west to a continent hitherto unvisited during this challenge. Can you guess where and what the next creature will be?

If you want to blog-hop to the next A-Z Challenge blog, please click HERE

F IS FOR FLIGHTLESS CORMORANT : A-Z Challenge

Welcome to Day 6 of the A-Z Blogging Challenge. My theme is:

'Wildlife Encounters'

The Galapagos Islands of Ecuador are chock-full of wonderful wildlife, much of which is endemic to these beautiful islands. The Flightless Cormorant is one such creature.

It has to be said that these birds are not particularly attractive but the interesting thing about them is that they are the only cormorant in the world to have lost the ability to fly.

With their webbed feet and powerful legs, these cormorants are fantastic at catching prey underwater. It is strange that their feathers haven’t evolved to become waterproof and they are obliged to sit with their stubby little wings outstretched to dry after a hunting session.

These birds are only found on two islands in the Galapagos. Our guide asked us to keep our distance from them, for obvious reasons. 

Sadly my visit to the Galapagos was before I started travel writing and my camera wasn’t up to much. Perhaps that’s a good enough excuse to re-visit one of the most incredible places I have ever visited on this planet.

See you tomorrow - I’m going to head back east. Can you guess where and what the next animal will be?

If you want to blog-hop to the next A-Z Challenge blog, please click HERE