Galapagos Penguin

Photo: Serge Arias · CC BY-NC-SA

The only penguin species in the Northern Hemisphere, Galapagos penguins reach their highest densities at Punta Espinoza where cold nutrient-rich upwellings bring abundant small fish close to shore. Underwater, penguins transform from their awkward terrestrial shuffle into blurs of speed, turning on a dime and chasing mullet and sardines through the shallows at speeds that make them almost impossible to photograph without excellent technique. They show virtually no fear of divers, sometimes hovering inches from a mask to investigate their own reflection.