Darwin's Finches
Geospiza / Camarhynchus spp.
- Where
- on most islands
- When
- Year round
JFMAMJJASOND
On 82 of 97 routes · 1978 departures in season
See these departures →The Galápagos Cruise · Wildlife
Galápagos Wildlife: 25 Animals and Where to See Them
25
species recorded
14
found only here
15
islands
US$1,800
per guest, double occupancy
Twenty-five animals account for most of the reason people come to Galápagos, and fourteen of them live nowhere else on earth: the giant tortoise, the marine iguana, the flightless cormorant, the waved albatross, the only penguin that breeds on the equator. All twenty-five are recorded across the 15 islands our ships call at, and no single itinerary reaches all of them. The best get to twenty-four, a typical departure to eighteen.
Where you go decides more than when. Fifteen of the twenty-five are on record all year, so the itinerary matters more than the calendar. The waved albatross is on Española and nowhere else, and it is at sea from January to March. The flightless cormorant is on Fernandina and Isabela only, in the cold water of the west. The Santa Fé land iguana lives on the one island it is named after. Blue-footed boobies dance from June to August, the male frigatebirds of Genovesa inflate their red throat pouches from March to June, sea lion pups arrive between August and November, and the marine iguanas of Punta Suárez turn red and green from December to March. Green turtles, white-tipped reef sharks and brown pelicans turn up almost everywhere, on ordinary snorkeling stops and at every landing. The map below shows which island holds what, and the list further down counts only the departures that are in the right place in the right month.
Where they are
Tap an island to filter the species below. The number is how many species are recorded there.
9 of 12 species shown
almost alwaysoftensometimesnot in this month
Galápagos Fur Seal
Arctocephalus galapagoensis
- Where
- 7 sites on 5 islands, mostly Central
- When
- Year round
JFMAMJJASOND
On 82 of 97 routes · 1992 departures in season
See these departures →Galápagos Land Iguana
Conolophus subcristatus
- Where
- 7 sites on 6 islands, mostly South
- When
- Year round
JFMAMJJASOND
On 83 of 97 routes · 2012 departures in season
See these departures →Galápagos Penguin
Spheniscus mendiculus
- Where
- 8 sites on 5 islands, mostly West
- When
- Year round, more between Jun and Nov
JFMAMJJASOND
On 78 of 97 routes · 1861 departures in season
See these departures →Galápagos Giant Tortoise
Chelonoidis spp.
- Where
- 10 sites on 5 islands, mostly Central
- When
- Year round, more between Jun and Dec
JFMAMJJASOND
On 85 of 97 routes · 2064 departures in season
See these departures →Galápagos Sea Lion
Zalophus wollebaeki
- Where
- on most islands
- When
- Year round, more between Aug and Nov
JFMAMJJASOND
On 86 of 97 routes · 2108 departures in season
See these departures →Red-footed Booby
Sula sula
- Where
- 5 sites on 4 islands, mostly North
- When
- Year round
JFMAMJJASOND
On 53 of 97 routes · 1130 departures in season
See these departures →Scalloped Hammerhead
Sphyrna lewini
- Where
- 5 sites on 5 islands, mostly South
- When
- Year round, more between Jun and Nov
JFMAMJJASOND
On 12 of 97 routes · 214 departures in season
See these departures →White-tipped Reef Shark
Triaenodon obesus
- Where
- on most islands
- When
- Year round
JFMAMJJASOND
On 40 of 97 routes · 855 departures in season
See these departures →The full lists, group by group
The fifteen above are the shortlist. Each group has its own page with every species on record, the same island map and the same departure check.
Select a departure that actually reaches it
994 of the 2108 upcoming departures put you where the Nazca Booby is, at the time it is there.
994
- You see it. The ship is at the site while the species is recorded there.
- Right island, wrong month. The route calls there outside the months on record.
- Never gets there. The route does not call at any of its sites.
27/09/2026US$3,600
Galaxy Stella · 4-Day Southern Islands: Isla Lobos' Fur Seals
2 spotsAsk about this date
29/09/2026US$3,735
Treasure · 5-Day Southern Islands: Los Gemelos' Daylight Owl
4 spotsAsk about this date
01/10/2026US$3,352
MONIQUE · 4-Day Southern Islands: Santa Cruz's Wild Tortoises
14 spotsAsk about this date
02/10/2026US$3,320
Solaris · 5-Day Southern Islands: Devil's Crown Hammerhead Sharks
13 spotsAsk about this date
03/10/2026US$3,992
ELITE · 4-Day Southern Islands: Espanola's Albatross Colony
5 spotsAsk about this date
06/10/2026US$5,130
Galaxy Sirius · 5-Day Southern Islands: Isla Lobos' Sea Lion Colony
4 spotsAsk about this date
07/10/2026US$4,956
Tribute · 5-Day Southern Islands: Espanola's Albatross Colony
14 spotsAsk about this date
11/10/2026US$1,800
Galaxy Stella · 4-Day Southern Islands: Isla Lobos' Fur Seals
4 spotsAsk about this date
12/10/2026US$5,295
Archipel I · 8-Day Southern & Northern: Prince Philip's Booby Steps
1 spotAsk about this date
13/10/2026US$3,735
Treasure · 5-Day Southern Islands: Los Gemelos' Daylight Owl
2 spotsAsk about this date
15/10/2026US$3,352
MONIQUE · 4-Day Southern Islands: Santa Cruz's Wild Tortoises
9 spotsAsk about this date
15/10/2026US$3,295
Archipel I · 5-Day Southern Islands: Espanola's Bold Mockingbird
1 spotAsk about this date
16/10/2026US$4,150
Solaris · 5-Day Southern Islands: Devil's Crown Hammerhead Sharks
5 spotsAsk about this date
20/10/2026US$4,845
Galaxy Sirius · 5-Day Southern Islands: Isla Lobos' Sea Lion Colony
6 spotsAsk about this date
21/10/2026US$4,956
Tribute · 5-Day Southern Islands: Espanola's Albatross Colony
11 spotsAsk about this date
25/10/2026US$2,880
Galaxy Stella · 4-Day Southern Islands: Isla Lobos' Fur Seals
2 spotsAsk about this date
27/10/2026US$4,150
Treasure · 5-Day Southern Islands: Los Gemelos' Daylight Owl
4 spotsAsk about this date
29/10/2026US$3,352
MONIQUE · 4-Day Southern Islands: Santa Cruz's Wild Tortoises
16 spotsAsk about this date
30/10/2026US$4,150
Solaris · 5-Day Southern Islands: Devil's Crown Hammerhead Sharks
2 spotsAsk about this date
Show more departures of shown
What's included
✓All meals on board
✓Two certified national park naturalist guides
✓All excursions and landings listed in the itinerary
✓Snorkelling gear and wetsuit
✓Kayaks and stand-up paddleboards on board
✓Coffee, tea and water at any time
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María Fernanda Ortiz
We answer personally, and we answer ourselves. A Galápagos trip is once in a lifetime, and you want the right advice before you book.
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from US$1,800
994 departures