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Ann Sanders of Sauble Beach was fascinated when she learned of the blue-footed booby and Lonesome George the tortoise and decided to travel to the only spot in the world where she could see them - the Galapagos Islands.

Ann Sanders holds a tapestry that features the blue-footed booby of the Galapagos

"My trip in November 2010 was a dream come true," says Sanders.  "We began in Quito, Ecuador and had a day to visit in the countryside. From there, we flew to the Galapagos Islands, on the equator 60"0 km west of Ecuador.  We boarded a small boat with a crew of seven and 16 passengers for a seven-day cruise around the islands, stopping to visit only those where tourists are allowed.  We had a wonderful local guide and good weather and it was a most fantastic trip."

The name booby derives from the Spanish term bobo, which means "fool" or "clown".  Like other long-flight seabirds, the 'booby' is very clumsy on land, can be easily tamed, captured and killed.

According to the internet:

The Blue-footed Booby is on average 81 centimetres (32 in) long and weighs 1.5 kilograms (3.3 lb), with the females slightly larger than the males. It has long pointed wings and a wedge shaped tail. They have strong, thick necks. The booby's eyes are placed on either side of their bill and oriented towards the front. They have excellent binocular vision. The Blue-footed Booby's eyes are yellow. The male has more yellow on its iris than the female. The Blue-footed Booby has permanently closed nostrils made for diving. They breathe through the corners of their mouths. Their feet range from a pale turquoise to a deep aquamarine. Males and younger birds have lighter feet than females do.

Sanders is the first speaker of the Bruce County Museum's Wednesday morning  'Adventure Talks' series and will be showing her many Galapagos slides on March 23rd .  The talks run from 10:30 am. to 11:30 a.m. each Wednesday through to April 27.

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Wednesday, March 09, 2011