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The Galápagos Cruise  ·  Wildlife

Galápagos Wildlife: 25 Animals and Where to See Them

25
species recorded
14
found only here
15
islands
US$2,036
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.

9 of 10 species shown
almost alwaysoftensometimesnot in this month

Galápagos Mockingbird

Mimus parvulus

Where
3 sites on 3 islands, mostly North
When
Year round
JFMAMJJASOND

On 66 of 97 routes · 1489 departures in season

See these departures  →

Marine Iguana

Amblyrhynchus cristatus

Where
on most islands
When
Year round, more between Jan and Mar
JFMAMJJASOND

On 85 of 97 routes · 1936 departures in season

See these departures  →

Swallow-tailed Gull

Creagrus furcatus

Where
6 sites on 5 islands, mostly South
When
Year round
JFMAMJJASOND

On 77 of 97 routes · 1793 departures in season

See these departures  →

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 Hawk

Buteo galapagoensis

Where
7 sites on 6 islands, mostly West
When
Year round
JFMAMJJASOND

On 82 of 97 routes · 2032 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 · 1133 departures in season

See these departures  →

Great Frigatebird

Fregata minor

Where
6 sites on 3 islands, mostly North
When
Year round, more between Mar and Jun
JFMAMJJASOND

On 67 of 97 routes · 1541 departures in season

See these departures  →

Nazca Booby

Sula granti

Where
8 sites on 7 islands, mostly South
When
Year round
JFMAMJJASOND

On 81 of 97 routes · 1961 departures in season

See these departures  →

Blue-footed Booby

Sula nebouxii

Where
11 sites on 8 islands, mostly South
When
Year round, more between Jun and Aug
JFMAMJJASOND

On 83 of 97 routes · 1991 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

24/09/2026US$4,140

Alya  ·  5-Day Northern & Western: Bartolome's Endemic Plant

Darwin Bay, day 2

Stragglers4 spotsAsk about this date
28/09/2026US$3,320

Solaris  ·  5-Day Northern Islands: South Plaza's Hybrid Iguana

Darwin Bay, day 3

Stragglers11 spotsAsk about this date
28/09/2026US$8,300

Solaris  ·  Solaris: Route BC

Darwin Bay, day 3

Stragglers11 spotsAsk about this date
28/09/2026US$14,095

Solaris  ·  Solaris: Route BCA

Darwin Bay, day 3

Stragglers4 spotsAsk about this date
01/10/2026US$6,035

Galaxy Sirius  ·  6-Day Western & Northern: Rabida's Red Sand Beach

Darwin Bay, day 5

Stragglers7 spotsAsk about this date
01/10/2026US$18,000

Tribute  ·  Tribute: Route CAB

Darwin Bay, day 13

Stragglers14 spotsAsk about this date
02/10/2026US$14,095

Solaris  ·  Solaris: Route CAB

Darwin Bay, day 13

Stragglers4 spotsAsk about this date
03/10/2026US$3,570

Galaxy Orion  ·  8-Day Western Islands: Isabela's Tortoise Hatchery

Darwin Bay, day 7

Stragglers1 spotAsk about this date
04/10/2026US$7,992

ENDEMIC  ·  8-Day Western Islands: Tagus Cove's Sailor Graffiti

Darwin Bay, day 2

Stragglers4 spotsAsk about this date
04/10/2026US$4,152

MONIQUE  ·  5-Day Southern & Western: Kicker Rock's Swim Channel

Darwin Bay, day 4

Stragglers6 spotsAsk about this date
05/10/2026US$7,475

Archipel I  ·  Archipel I: Route AB4

Darwin Bay, day 9

Stragglers1 spotAsk about this date
05/10/2026US$10,300

Archipel I  ·  Archipel I: Route AB

Darwin Bay, day 9

Stragglers1 spotAsk about this date
06/10/2026US$10,345

Solaris  ·  Solaris: Route AB

Darwin Bay, day 9

Stragglers4 spotsAsk about this date
06/10/2026US$14,095

Solaris  ·  Solaris: Route ABC

Darwin Bay, day 9

Stragglers4 spotsAsk about this date
07/10/2026US$3,840

Galaxy Stella  ·  5-Day Northern Islands: Kicker Rock's Shark Channel

Darwin Bay, day 3

Stragglers4 spotsAsk about this date
07/10/2026US$11,150

Tribute  ·  Tribute: Route AB

Darwin Bay, day 7

Stragglers14 spotsAsk about this date
07/10/2026US$18,000

Tribute  ·  Tribute: Route ABC

Darwin Bay, day 7

Stragglers14 spotsAsk about this date
08/10/2026US$5,295

Archipel I  ·  Archipel I: Route A5B4

Darwin Bay, day 6

Stragglers1 spotAsk about this date
08/10/2026US$8,345

Archipel I  ·  Archipel I: Route A5B

Darwin Bay, day 6

Stragglers1 spotAsk about this date
12/10/2026US$5,295

Archipel I  ·  8-Day Southern & Northern: Prince Philip's Booby Steps

Darwin Bay, day 2

Stragglers1 spotAsk about this date
12/10/2026US$2,036

Archipel I  ·  4-Day Northern & Western: Sullivan Bay's Fresh Lava

Darwin Bay, day 2

Stragglers4 spotsAsk about this date
12/10/2026US$3,528

Solaris  ·  5-Day Northern Islands: South Plaza's Hybrid Iguana

Darwin Bay, day 3

Stragglers5 spotsAsk about this date
12/10/2026US$8,300

Solaris  ·  Solaris: Route BC

Darwin Bay, day 3

Stragglers5 spotsAsk about this date
12/10/2026US$14,095

Solaris  ·  Solaris: Route BCA

Darwin Bay, day 3

Stragglers5 spotsAsk about this date
15/10/2026US$5,992

ENDEMIC  ·  Western Galápagos Islands

Darwin Bay, day 5

Stragglers8 spotsAsk about this date
15/10/2026US$6,390

Galaxy Sirius  ·  6-Day Western & Northern: Rabida's Red Sand Beach

Darwin Bay, day 5

Stragglers8 spotsAsk about this date
15/10/2026US$4,335

EcoGalaxy  ·  6-Day Western & Northern: Bartolome's Pinnacle Rock

Darwin Bay, day 4

Stragglers5 spotsAsk about this date
16/10/2026US$14,095

Solaris  ·  Solaris: Route CAB

Darwin Bay, day 13

Stragglers1 spotAsk about this date
18/10/2026US$4,152

MONIQUE  ·  5-Day Southern & Western: Kicker Rock's Swim Channel

Darwin Bay, day 4

Stragglers7 spotsAsk about this date
20/10/2026US$4,952

ELITE  ·  5-Day Northern & Western: Darwin Bay's Flooded Caldera

Darwin Bay, day 2

Stragglers1 spotAsk about this date
20/10/2026US$10,345

Solaris  ·  Solaris: Route AB

Darwin Bay, day 9

Stragglers1 spotAsk about this date
20/10/2026US$14,095

Solaris  ·  Solaris: Route ABC

Darwin Bay, day 9

Stragglers1 spotAsk about this date
21/10/2026US$11,150

Tribute  ·  Tribute: Route AB

Darwin Bay, day 7

Stragglers2 spotsAsk about this date
21/10/2026US$18,000

Tribute  ·  Tribute: Route ABC

Darwin Bay, day 7

Stragglers2 spotsAsk about this date
22/10/2026US$4,370

Alya  ·  5-Day Northern & Western: Bartolome's Endemic Plant

Darwin Bay, day 2

Stragglers3 spotsAsk about this date
22/10/2026US$4,766

Archipel I  ·  Archipel I: Route A5B4

Darwin Bay, day 6

Stragglers2 spotsAsk about this date

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

Your selection
MONIQUE · 5-Day Southern & Western: Kicker Rock's Swim Channel
18/10/2026 · 4 nights · from US$4,152
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María Fernanda Ortiz
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from US$2,036
843 departures