Share your Galapagos penguin photos and you could contribute towards ensuring this endangered species survives in the Galapagos Islands!

Galapagos penguins are rare and they are endangered, so it is a special treat to see these cute birds when you visit the islands. It is even better if you’re able to get a nice photo of our penguin friends.

Increasing the Galapagos penguin population and monitoring their health is a long-term, and expensive endeavour. But you can help, by sharing your photos with iGalapagos.

Created by Dr. Dee Boersma, iGalapagos is a catalog of photos of Galapagos penguins, being used by researchers at the University of Washington to identify individuals and determine which Galapagos penguins are breeding, or moving around the islands.

Your photo can actually help researchers determine how healthy a penguin is, and even how old it is!

Galapagos Penguin, Swimming near Puerto Villamil

Around Isabela, Fernandina and Bartolome islands, her team of researchers and scientists have built more than 120 “penguin homes”, which are artificial nests to help encourage them to nest and breed in the islands. When a species is so vulnerable, any bit of extra help is needed to ensure they’ll survive, and the best way for that to happen is to keep their population increasing.

The work is starting to pay off too, as there have been nine penguins hatched from these special penguin homes. Overall Galapagos penguin populations are fluctuating, but are less than half of what they were back in the 1970s, when more than 2000 were found around the islands. Penguins are still using their natural sites they have been known to use since back in the 70s, but these new artificial nests are becoming more important and more frequently used. It’s all about giving the penguins the best options and best chances to live in the unforgiving environment of the Galapagos Islands.

Submit your Galapagos penguin photos and learn more at: www.igalapagos.org