Galapagos Wildlife 2015

Blue-footed boobies preparing for their mating dance. When we came across this pair, our guides seemed surprised. I didn't understand why until returning home and doing some internet research. Eleven years ago, Astrid and I saw large colonies of breeding blue-footed boobies, but on this trip we saw just a few birds and only 1 nest. Turns out, their population has dropped from around 20,000 in the 1960s to just over 6000 today. Breeding and reproduction have been in free-fall. Since 2011, few birds have bred and almost no juveniles have been seen.

A scarcity of small schooling fish, particularly sardines, seems to be the primary culprit. Boobies will not attempt to breed unless there is an adequate food supply. As with everything else in nature, losing a link in the food chain has far-reaching consequences.