Birds of the Galapagos (Abbreviated)
The species contained in this guide are for use by attendees of the Perot Museum of Nature and Science teacher workshop, Now Showing: Galapagos, on January 10, 2015. They represent a small sampling of the 183 recorded taxa surveyed as present on the Galapagos Islands, as of May 2014
Galapagos Hawk
The Galapagos Hawk (Buteo galapagoensis) is a large hawk endemic to the Galapagos Islands.
Black-bellied Whistling-Duck
The Black-bellied Whistling Duck or Black-bellied Whistling-Duck (Dendrocygna autumnalis), formerly also called Black-bellied Tree Duck, is a whistling duck that breeds from the southernmost United States and tropical Central to south-central South America. In the USA, it can be found year-round in parts of southeast Texas, and seasonally in southeast Arizona, and ...more ↓
Large Cactus-Finch
The Large Cactus Finch (Geospiza conirostris) is a species of bird in the tanager family Thraupidae. It is one of Darwin's finches, and is endemic to the Galápagos islands, Ecuador, where it is restricted to Española, Genovesa, Darwin, and Wolf Islands. This rather dark bird resembles the smaller and finer-beaked Common Cactus Finch, but the two species do not co-inhabit any ...more ↓
Small Ground-Finch
The Small Ground Finch (Geospiza fuliginosa) is a species of bird in the tanager family Thraupidae. Endemic to the Galápagos Islands, it is common and widespread in shrubland, woodland, and other habitats on most islands in the archipelago. It commonly feeds on small seeds and parasites from the skins of Galápagos tortoises, and Galápagos land and marine iguanas.
Common Cactus-Finch
The Common Cactus Finch or Small Cactus Finch (Geospiza scandens) is a species of bird in the Darwin's finch group of the tanager family Thraupidae. It is endemic to the Galapagos Islands, where it is found on most islands, with the notable exception of Fernandina, Española, Genovesa, Darwin and Wolf. Most of these islands are inhabited by its close relative, the Large ...more ↓
Masked Duck
The Masked Duck (Nomonyx dominicus) is a tiny stiff-tailed duck ranging through the tropical Americas. They are found from Mexico to South America and also in the Caribbean. Primarily non-migratory, Masked Ducks are reported as very uncommon vagrants in the southernmost United States, along the Mexican border and in Florida.
Flightless Cormorant
The Flightless Cormorant (Phalacrocorax harrisi), also known as the Galapagos Cormorant, is a cormorant native to the Galapagos Islands, and an example of the highly unusual fauna there. It is unique in that it is the only cormorant that has lost the ability to fly. Once it was placed in its own genus, Nannopterum or Compsohalieus, although current taxonomy ...more ↓
Waved Albatross
The Waved Albatross (Phoebastria irrorata), also known as Galapagos Albatross, is the only member of the Diomedeidae family located in the tropics. When they forage, the Waved Albatross follow straight paths to a single site off the coast of Peru, about 1,000 km (620 mi) distant to the east. During the non-breeding season, these birds reside primarily in the areas of the ...more ↓
Black-bellied Plover
The Grey Plover (Pluvialis squatarola), known as the Black-bellied Plover in North America, is a medium-sized plover breeding in arctic regions. It is a long-distance migrant, with a nearly worldwide coastal distribution when not breeding.
Prothonotary Warbler
The Prothonotary Warbler (Protonotaria citrea) is a small songbird of the New World warbler family. It is the only member of the genus Protonotaria.
American Redstart
The American Redstart (Setophaga ruticilla) is a New World warbler. It is unrelated to the Old World redstarts. It derives its name from the male's red tail, start being an old word for tail.
Galapagos Penguin
The Galapagos Penguin (Spheniscus mendiculus) is a penguin endemic to the Galapagos Islands. It is the only penguin that lives north of the equator in the wild. It can survive due to the cool temperatures resulting from the Humboldt Current and cool waters from great depths brought up by the Cromwell Current. The Galapagos Penguin is one of the banded penguins, the other species ...more ↓
South Polar Skua
The South Polar Skua (Stercorarius maccormicki) is a large seabird in the skua family Stercorariidae. An older name for the bird is MacCormick’s Skua, after explorer and naval surgeon Robert McCormick, who first collected the type specimen. This species and the other large southern hemisphere skuas, together with Great Skua, are sometimes placed in a separate genus ...more ↓
Pomarine Jaeger
The Pomarine Skua (Stercorarius pomarinus) known as Pomarine Jaeger in the Americas, is a seabird in the skua family Stercorariidae. It is a migrant, wintering at sea in the tropical oceans.
Nazca Booby
The Nazca Booby (Sula granti) is a booby found in the eastern Pacific Ocean, primarily on the Galápagos Islands and on Clipperton Island. The Revillagigedo Islands off Baja California may be the northwesternmost limit of its breeding range.
Blue-footed Booby
The Blue-footed Booby (Sula nebouxii) is a marine bird in the family Sulidae, which includes ten species of long-winged seabirds. First studied extensively by Charles Darwin, it belongs to the genus Sula, which comprises six species of boobies. It is easily recognizable by its distinctive bright blue feet, which is a sexually selected trait. Males display their feet in an ...more ↓
Red-footed Booby
The Red-footed Booby (Sula sula) is a large seabird of the booby family, Sulidae. As suggested by the name, adults always have red feet, but the colour of the plumage varies. They are powerful and agile fliers, but they are clumsy in takeoffs and landings. They are found widely in the tropics, and breed colonially in coastal regions, especially islands.
Black-browed Albatross
The Black-browed Albatross (Thalassarche melanophrys), also known as the Black-browed Mollymawk, is a large seabird of the albatross family Diomedeidae; it is the most widespread and common member of its family.
Greater Yellowlegs
The Greater Yellowlegs (Tringa melanoleuca) is a large North American shorebird, similar in appearance to the smaller Lesser Yellowlegs. Its closest relative, however, is the Greenshank, which together with the Spotted Redshank form a close-knit group. Among them, these three species show all the basic leg and foot colors found in the shanks, demonstrating that this character is ...more ↓
