Patagonia-2 Puerto Deseado

Go Learn had hired a bus for transport and contracted with a local guide Sebastian, who was an incredibly knowledgeable naturalist, who traveled with us for the next five days. 

Our bus had the Go Learn logo!

We drove from the Comodoro Rivadavia airport through the rugged Patagonia desert which reminded us of the west desert in Utah. Puerto Deseado, which means Port Desire, is in Argentina’s Santa Cruz Provence. Puerto Deseado is a small city whose economy is based on the fishing industry. There is tourism, based on seeing the wildlife, particularly dolphins, Magellanic penguins and Rockhopper penguins.

We went to Darwin Expeditions, a local outfitter. The name of the business derives from Darwin having camped in Puerto Deseado in 1833 during the voyage of the Beagle. 

This banner hanging inside Darwin Expeditions shows a drawing by Conrad Martens, a landscape artist who was on the Beagle voyage to document their journeys. The Charles Darwin quotation is “No creo haber visto jamas un lugar mas alejado del mundo que esta frieta de rocas en medio de las inmensa llanura,” which translates as “I don’t think I’ve ever seen a place more remote from the world than this fringed rock in the middle of the immense plain.” Additional Conrad Martens drawings can be seen on the Darwin Expeditions website. 

On our first visit to Darwin Expeditions we heard a lecture from Annick Morgenthaler, Ph.D., who studies ecology and population biology of penguins and cormorants. We learned a lot about penguins and their lifestyle. (They mostly eat squid and have to return to their nests to regurgitate food for their young.) She talked about how her research group quantifies penguin nesting sites and how they measure the influences of climate change on penguin populations. It was a great talk and increased our enthusiasm about seeing penguins! 

We went back to town for lunch and then Nate gave us a talk on ecology, using the TV in the hotel living room. It was really good! 

We then returned to Darwin Expeditions for our first boat trip, cruising along the Ria Deseado (Deseado River) and then the Isla de los Pajaros (Bird Island). We put on our life jackets and boarded an inflatable boat. 

Roxi from Darwin Expeditions was our guide for all of boat trips in Puerto Deseado. 

Do you remember in the Patagonia-1 Buenos Aires post I talked about Patagonia weather and said that people were bundled up in my photos?

A group of Commerson’s dolphins put on a show for us as we cruised down the river. Truly beautiful creatures! They move so fast, I am amazed I got any good photos. 

We saw several Black-Faced Ibis.

There were cliffs along the Ilsa del Rey, with birds nesting there. I got wonderful pictures of Red-Legged Cormorants. Wikipedia states that “the eyes are dark green, surrounded by sixteen tiny blue marks,” which I captured in some of the photos. Amazing eyes.

These two pictures show juveniles that lack the coloration of the adults.

Magellanic cormorants also nested on these cliffs.

We cruised along the river and passed an island covered with sea lions. Can you guess which is the dominant male?

Our boat landed on the Isla de los Pajaros (Bird Island), and we went on shore so that we could observe nesting Magellanic penguins. So many penguins! 

There were mothers with their young.

How close were we to the penguins? Or how close did the penguins come to us? 

This is a picture April from our group took of me. 

We also saw Kelp Gulls and Blackish Ostercatchers on the island. 

Back in the boats, we went up a river channel where a Lesser Horned Owl was nesting up in the rocks.

Brian from our group had good binoculars, and he announced that there was a baby owl in the nest. So we circled back for another look (and photo shoot).

The next day we got up early and went to Darwin Expeditions for a long boat ride to Isla Pingüino (Penguin Island). On the way, we were met by a group of Peale’s dolphins, a different species from yesterday. They were having fun, circling and chasing our boat. 

I got pictures of these flying birds from the boat, which I think are Imperial Shags. 

The island has an old lighthouse. As we approached the island we were greeted by sea lions and Magellanic penguins. 

We walked across the island and saw lots of Magellanic penguins tending their nests. 

The main predators of penguins when fishing at sea are sea lions and sharks. While adult penguins do not have predators on these islands, they must actively defend their nests from predatory birds who kill chicks or steal eggs. Two parents are required since one must protect the nest while the partner feeds at sea. The main predator on Isla Pingüino is the Brown Skua. 

This is an Andean negrito we saw on the island. 

Rockhoppers. We hiked across to the other side of the island to the Rockhopper Penguin nesting area. The Rockhoppers were amazing visually — the highlight of the trip for me. They had red eyes, an orange beak, and bright yellow eyebrows. 

We saw Rockhoppers with babies and on eggs. 

These two look like they are cuddling. 

I spent much time trying to get the perfect picture with my telephoto lens. The bird should have red eyes and yellow-tufted eyebrows visible; immature penguins lack these. The body should be displayed in an attractive pose, with the blue sea in the background but out of focus. Of course, the penguin had to be in focus. And I got the perfect shot—my favorite picture!