Giant Tortoises
Land Lizards
Insects
Plant Life
Birds
Even backyard birders will be happy to see the Yellow warbler (Dendroica petechia) on many islands here, especially in mangroves or manzanillo trees. The Galápagos variety is bold and aggressive, making it surprisingly easy to get a close-up photograph of one. Though somewhat duller in color than mainland populations, in the relatively drab landscape of these islands they stand out as a bright, cheery presence.
Another endemic is the Galápagos martin (Pronge modesta), a glossy purple swallow that nests in cliffs as around Tagus Cove, or crater rims in the interior, of many islands. Some believe the population here is merely a slightly smaller variant of the Southern martin (P. Concolor) of south America, suggesting a recent arrival on the westerly winds
Recent arrival is more than a possibility for the Dark-billed cuckoo (Coccyzus melacoryphus). The first sighting in the Galápagos was in 1888 on San Cristóbal and Floreana, and today it is found on most other large islands as well. Native to tropical lowlands from Argentina to Colombia, it may owe its arrival and success in the Galápagos to the same environmental factors that threaten other species. The warm waters of El Niño years encourage its dispersal, and it has colonized other islands off the continent as well. As befits a recent arrival, the cuckoo is shy and secretive, instinctively wary of human contact.
