Galapagos Bird Facts | Galapagos Islands Wildlife Guide

The Galapagos Islands are bounded by endless open sea, so it’s natural that seabirds would occupy a prominent place in the archipelago’s fauna. Visitors often see most of the 19 species (5 are endemic) that are Galapagos residents. Biologists estimate that up to 750,000 seabirds spend time in Galapagos, including 30 percent of the planet’s blue-footed boobies and the world’s largest colony of red-footed boobies.

Few species of land birds inhabit the Galapagos, and only 29 resident species of land birds occupy the Galapagos, 22 of which are endemic to the archipelago. Their presence in Galapagos, however, is difficult to explain. They may have arrived by strong winds, although luck must have played a big part.

Traveling through the Galapagos offers a birding opportunity of a lifetime, with birdlife that will enrapture even those who don’t consider themselves “birders.” Some land birds are not exciting by appearance because they are generally rather dull-colored. However, their “tameness” is unsurpassed, which makes them a joy to watch. The colorful nesting seabird communities of the Galapagos Islands are most unusual, both visually and behaviorally, as well as extremely entertaining.


Click on the links below to navigate to each species.