Apoyo a la recolección y toma de fotografías del Pingüino de Galápagos para entender sus ciclos reproductivos, muda, presencia de juveniles e identificación

Abstract

The Galapagos Penguin, Spheniscus mendiculus, is endemic to the Galapagos and it is considered as endangered. In order to survive it has many adaptation, for example, it is the only penguin that is flexible in its breeding cycles. With good conditions it can breed 3 times a year. When the conditions are not good, like during El Niño event, few penguins will reproduce. The absence of juvenile penguins in the populations indicates that they are declining. Due to its fragility it’s important to monitor this species constantly. But due to the cost of the logistics this is difficult. Using citizen science through photography, during touristic trips that visit the nesting sites of the penguin, the species was monitored for 20 months. This shown that this methodology can be effective to know more about the status of the population, presence of juveniles and other aspects of the biology of the penguin. Also, it was proved that you can identify penguins using photos. All this information contributes to the knowledge and therefore the better protection and management of this species.