Waved Albatross
Endemic to the Galapagos, the waved albatross is the largest bird on the island with a wingspan approaching 8 ft.  Starting in early April, the entire population of albatross arrives at Espanola Island to nest and breed, and then leaves again in December to stay four months at sea.  If seeing the waved albatross is important to you, you should visit the island between April and early December.

Blue-Footed Booby
As their name suggests, the blue-footed boobies are best recognized by their bright blue feet.  They are also well known for their unusual courtship display, in which they move their feet in sequence, bow and point their wings and beak skyward.  Large colonies of blue-footed boobies can be found on the islands of Espanola and Seymour, and the islet of Daphne Major.

Red-Footed Booby
The second specie of booby on the Galapagos is the red-footed booby, which is similar to the blue-footed variety except that it has bright red feet.  The best place to see these birds are on Tower Island and the Punta Pitt on San Cristobal Island.

Masked or White Booby
The last and largest species of booby on the islands is the masked or white booby.  Their most distinguishing feature is their brilliant white color and their black face mask.  They are frequently seen on the steep slopes of the Tower and Espanola Islands, particularly during their mating seasons, which is from May to February on Tower and from September to May on Espanola.

Flightless Cormorant
The flightless cormorant is endemic to the Galapagos and is the only grounded cormorant in the world.  It makes up for the loss of its wings by being a terrific diver.  The flightless cormorants are an endangered species and can only be found on the western island of Isabela and Fernandina.

Frigate Bird
Frigate birds are named after frigates, war ships that were commonly used by pirates.  This is an ideal name for these large, black birds which harass other ocean birds coming back from fishing trips until they drop their catch.  The males are easily distinguished by their large red throat pouches, which they inflate during courtship displays.  They can be seen on Punta Pitt, San Cristobal Island, Seymour Island, and on Darwin Bay, Tower Island. 

Brown Pelican
The brown pelicans are instantly recognizable by their large size and huge pouched bill.  They are normally brown in color but during their breeding season have bright white and chestnut markings around their head.  They can be seen on every island, frequently spotted flying in large groups.

Galapagos Penguin
Endemic to the Galapagos, these birds are the most northerly penguins in the world.  They were greatly affected by El Nino, loosing over 75% of their population.  They are now slowly recovering and can be seen on Fernandina, Bartolme and Isabela islands.

Lava Gull
This small, dark grey or black bird is endemic to the Galapagos and is the rarest gull in the world, with only 400 pairs in existence.  Despite this, visitors are likely to see them since they are widely distributed throughout all the islands, especially in the bays and lagoons of Puerto Ayora on Santa Cruz Island.

Swallow-Tailed Gull
These gulls are endemic to the islands and are the only nocturnal gulls in the world.  They have grey and white plumage with bright red feet and a crimson eye ring.  They breed in a 9-10 month cycle and are found in large colonies on South Plaza, Tower, and Seymour Island.

Red-Billed Tropicbird
    These birds are considered to be the most beautiful and graceful birds in the Galapagos Islands.  They are easily distinguished by their brilliant white color, their red bill, and their  long tail streamers.  Commonly seen around the cliffs of Espanola, Tower and South Plaza Islands.

True Petrel
True Petrels have black and white plumage.  They are commonly seen gliding over the ocean in search of fish and squid.

Storm Petrel
There are three species of storm petrels on the Galapagos, the wedge-rumped, band-rumped and white-vented storm petrels, all dark with a white rump.  They are the smallest among sea birds, about the size of a swallow.  The wedge-rumped and band-rumped storm petrels breed in huge colonies on Genevosa Island.  Although they exist in the thousands, little about the species are known.

Lava Heron
Lava Herons are the only endemic specie of herons on the island. It's dark plumage helps it blend into the lava shores where it hunts for food. They breed year round, but the preferred time is from September to March. They can be found on all coastal areas of the islands.

Yellow-Crowned Heron
This stocky, grey heron has nocturnal habits but can sometimes be spotted during the day in shaded areas along the coasts of all the islands.  They breed all year round in single pairs, making their nests in mangroves or under rocks.

Great Blue Heron
Despite their name, great blue herons are really mostly grey in color.  They breed year round, often making nests in mangroves.  They are usually seen alone but occasionally in pairs on the coastal areas of all but the northern islands.

Greater Flamingo
These large, pink, long necked birds are instantly recognizable.  They breed in small colonies year round but especially from January to May.  They are mostly seen in salty lagoons in Floreana, Jervis and Santiago islands.

American Oystercatchers
These birds are unmistakable with their black and white plumage, yellow eyes and pink feet.  They nest mainly from October to March in solitary pairs.  Although only between 100 and 200 pairs exist on the Galapagos, they are spread out along rocky coasts on most of the islands and are frequently seen.

Darwin's Finches
Endemic to the Galapagos, the 13 species of Darwin's finches are the most famous and biologically important birds on the island.  The birds are thought to have descended from a common ancestor, it will take an export to tell them apart.  They can be found spread throughout all the islands.

Galapagos Doves
Endemic to the islands, these colorful doves are the only resident member of the pigeon family on the Galapagos.  Breeding occurs year round.  They are often seen in the drier portions of several islands.

Galapagos Hawk
These endemic hawks are the only raptors which breed on the Galapagos.  Their relative fearlessness has led to their extinction by hunters on several islands and now only 100 hawks remain.  They breed year round but mostly from May to July, and practice cooperative polyandry where two males mate with the female and help raise the young.  They are most common on the outlying islands such as Espanola, Santa Fe, Isabela and Fernandia.

Galapagos Mockingbird
There are four species of mocking birds on the Galapagos, the Galapagos, hood, Charles and Chatum mockingbird, all epidemic to the islands.  They are all very similar to each other, except for their bills which vary in shape and size.  They can be found on most of the islands.

Yellow Warbler
The tiny Yellow Warbler is easily distinguished because it is the only bright yellow bird on the islands.  The male has red streaks on the chest.  They are very abundant and can be seen throughout the Galapagos.

Vermillion Flycatcher
The adult male vermillion flycatcher is unmistakable with his bright red and black plumage.  The female is brown with  yellowish plumage beneath.  They breed primarily during the rainy season and are commonly seen throughout the highlands of most islands.  The best place to see them is in the trees and shrubs around the calderas of Los Gemelos in the Santa Cruz highlands.

Short-Eared Owl
Short-eared owls are diurnal and so are occasionally seen during the day.  They breed year round but prefer the rainy season.  They can be found on all the main islands, but are most common on Santa Cruz and Tower.