Magnificent frigatebirds are the “bad boys” of the Galapagos. Scavengers, they mostly steal food from other birds—even from the mouths of other species’ chicks. Males have the bulbous red chest pouches called a gulars that look almost like turkey gottles. Apparently they inflate to the size of basketballs during mating season. Frigatebirds have a wing span of up to two meters but they cannot swim. The chicks spend five months in the nest before learning to fly and don’t reach maturity until they are five years old.
Every morning we watch them off the bow of the boat as they perform their acrobatics. For whatever reason, they follow the boat as we move from island to island. Maybe they learn to follow the fishing boats but can’t yet tell the difference between fishermen and tourists. I don’t know why, we wear the floppy hats and all smell of sun tan lotion.
For a rest they land on the boat. Like a murder of crows on a clothesline, they line up on the edge of the roof. You can hear their beaks clicking and clacking as they constantly preen themselves. Unfortunately, their tails overhang our clothesline. Given that is has rained on and off for the last two days, our clothes are just starting to dry. We may have to start all over again if one of the frigates decides to take a bathroom break. They have one hell of a discharge.
You gotta love these birds though, while they are opportunistic breeders the males are diligent parents.
