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Project Noah Nature School
Amblyrhynchus cristatus
These Galápagos marine iguanas were spotted in Punta Espinoza, Fernandina Island, Galápagos. In the video, a marine iguana is swimming before returning on a rock to warm up. Because the Galápagos ocean waters are extremely cold, iguanas lose heat rapidly when feeding. This forces them to return to the rocks and warm up in the sun again.
Spotted on Nov 26, 2012
Submitted on Jan 24, 2015
3 Comments
Great spotting, great video! Thanks! A bit of additional info: Surface water temperatures in Galapagos are much lower than you would expect them to be on the equator, but they are generally around 20°C in the center of ther Archipelago, but may be around 15°C in Punta Espinoza, where sea productivity, i.e. growth of algae, is highest, - meaning that Marine Iguanas find most food where the water is coldest. That is why you see so many Marine Iguanas on Fernandina. And, yes, you are right, after feeding at low tide they really want to get out and warm up on the warm lava rocks! and they may stay out feeding for an hour and more, diving as deep as 10-15 meters for up to an hour!
Wonderful spotting! nice video.
Great spotting