It's birds that make the Galapagos so enchanting! There are some birds that can only be found on these islands off of Ecuador in the Pacific. How did these birds get there? And if they flew from somewhere else, why can some of them not be found on any other spot on earth? Gulls are one species of birds out of many found on the coasts of islands in the Galapagos. There are three types of gulls that inhabit the small islands in the ocean. The swallow-tailed gull, the franklin’s gull, and the lava gull live on the Galapagos for the main parts of the lives; some of the gulls are migrant, some are residential, and one specific type of gull can only be found in the Galapagos and no where else. All three of the birds are similar in appearance with white or grey or black feathers, long, skinny legs, and a hooked beak used for stabbing food out of the water. Most of the gulls are sea birds and live on the coast on the beaches or in the water. So what makes them different?
Both the male and the female gulls are hardly distinguishable, except during mating where the gulls form new features to signal that it is mating season and attract other gulls. The males and females of swallow-tailed gulls for example form a red ring around their eyes and form red feet during the mating seasons. I don't know if it's just me, but I don't see how female birds are attracted to red feet and eyes...
Click here to see the mating rituals of a swallow-tailed gull. You can see in the video that one bird has the red feet that form during mating season.
The lava gull is the rarest gull in the world, with only 300 pairs living in total!! And hopefully we will get to see some on our trip. The lava gulls are endemic to the Galapagos, meaning they are unique to the Galapagos and have not been found anywhere else. The lava gulls also have an uncommon trait than the other gulls around it. The lava gulls are scavengers; along with fish and crustaceans from the ocean, the lava gulls also eat lizards, small turtles, and small iguanas on the island too.
Click here to see a video of a lava gull's call; which kinda sounds like laughter
The swallow-tailed gulls are mainly found on the many islands of the Galapagos, but they are migrant birds, so some have been spotted in islands off of Colombia and South America. The swallow-tailed gull is unique because it is the only nocturnal gull in the world. These specific gulls sleep in the day, and fly over the oceans at night to eat squid; which feed off of the plankton that come to the surface at night. While in the Galapagos if we see them, they'll probably be asleep on the beach getting ready to feed when they wake up.
Click here to see some pictures of swallow-tailed gulls and lava gulls.
The Franklin’s Gulls are found not only in the Galapagos, but also in North America, South America, and the Pacific coast. During the winter, this gull lives on sandy beaches and along coasts; probably in places similar to the Galapagos islands. In the summer, the gull travels to inland marshes and lakes. The franklins’ gull eats things like seeds, worms, and insects. These gulls aren’t rare like the lava gull, but they are a common bird in steep decline in America.
The lava gulls are the only gulls that are not found anywhere else besides the Galapagos. The lava gulls also are the rarest and have the lowest population. Do you think that the lava gulls only living in one area caused them to have the lowest population? Do you think that if the gulls on the Galapagos migrated to other islands they would have a bigger population?
Both the male and the female gulls are hardly distinguishable, except during mating where the gulls form new features to signal that it is mating season and attract other gulls. The males and females of swallow-tailed gulls for example form a red ring around their eyes and form red feet during the mating seasons. I don't know if it's just me, but I don't see how female birds are attracted to red feet and eyes...
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| this is a picture of swallow-tailed gulls mating http://www.jeaniron.ca/Gulls/2012/galapgulls.htm |
The lava gull is the rarest gull in the world, with only 300 pairs living in total!! And hopefully we will get to see some on our trip. The lava gulls are endemic to the Galapagos, meaning they are unique to the Galapagos and have not been found anywhere else. The lava gulls also have an uncommon trait than the other gulls around it. The lava gulls are scavengers; along with fish and crustaceans from the ocean, the lava gulls also eat lizards, small turtles, and small iguanas on the island too.
Click here to see a video of a lava gull's call; which kinda sounds like laughter
The swallow-tailed gulls are mainly found on the many islands of the Galapagos, but they are migrant birds, so some have been spotted in islands off of Colombia and South America. The swallow-tailed gull is unique because it is the only nocturnal gull in the world. These specific gulls sleep in the day, and fly over the oceans at night to eat squid; which feed off of the plankton that come to the surface at night. While in the Galapagos if we see them, they'll probably be asleep on the beach getting ready to feed when they wake up.
Click here to see some pictures of swallow-tailed gulls and lava gulls.
The Franklin’s Gulls are found not only in the Galapagos, but also in North America, South America, and the Pacific coast. During the winter, this gull lives on sandy beaches and along coasts; probably in places similar to the Galapagos islands. In the summer, the gull travels to inland marshes and lakes. The franklins’ gull eats things like seeds, worms, and insects. These gulls aren’t rare like the lava gull, but they are a common bird in steep decline in America.
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This is a picture of a franklin's gullhttp://www.birdspix.com/north-america/gulls-terns-and-skimmers-laridae/gulls-gulls-terns-and-skimmers-laridae/franklins-gull |
The lava gulls are the only gulls that are not found anywhere else besides the Galapagos. The lava gulls also are the rarest and have the lowest population. Do you think that the lava gulls only living in one area caused them to have the lowest population? Do you think that if the gulls on the Galapagos migrated to other islands they would have a bigger population?
Bibliography:
https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Franklins_Gull/lifehistory
I think the fact that the gulls only live in the Galapagos does contribute to their low population because of the limited amount of land and other resources for the birds. If the gulls did migrate to other islands, one possibility would be for them to have a larger population; however, it is also a possibility that once the gulls migrate to other islands they could begin adapting to their new surroundings and eventually form a different species of gull.
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