The Galapagos are birdwatcher's paradise or so say the tourist brochures.
This time it's true! The bird life (and other wildlife) is so special because they
completely lack instinctive fear of people. You can approach a bird to within a few feet
and it will eye you warily, but otherwise show no response. A birdwatcher can get up
close and personal with species they could not see anywhere else. Many of the birds are
unique to the islands. Seabirds thrive in the diverse shore-line, cliffside and volcanic
habitats. Through the panorama soot-dark finches and bright yellow warblers thread their
way among forests of prickly pear, palo santo and palo verde. Uplands are
the domain of damp tropical forests the habitat of birds you have never seen
before. Along a rocky cliff, thousands of pairs of raucuous birds nest on the ground,
performing weird and often amusing rituals of greeting, courtship or territory.
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