![_M5A9806-Enhanced-NR Floreana Mockingbird. Photo by Alex Lamoreaux.](https://wildside.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com/wp-content/uploads/20240831175017/M5A9806-Enhanced-NR-scaled.jpg)
Floreana Mockingbird – the rarest of the 4 Galapagos mockingbirds!
Jul 31, 2024 | by Alex Lamoreaux
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Two of 73 American Flamingos we saw on Isla Floreana – a stunning adult, and a flyby juvenile! Photo by Alex Lamoreaux.
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Floreana Mockingbird. Photo by Alex Lamoreaux.
The two very tiny, rocky islets of Champion and Gardner are just off the northeast corner of Floreana and are currently the last two places on Earth to see the critically endangered Floreana Mockingbird! You can’t land on the islets, but by slowly motoring along the rocky shoreline we were treated to excellent views of these striking and rare mockingbirds! Bold brown-black patches on their chests and back make them the most distinctive of the 4 Galapagos mockingbird species. Their population fluctuates dramatically from year to year, with crashes during dry periods and booms during wet periods – sometimes dropping to as few as 20 pairs.
![](https://wildside.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com/wp-content/uploads/20240831175015/M5A9768-Enhanced-NR-1024x683.jpg)
Floreana Mockingbird. Photo by Alex Lamoreaux.
![](https://wildside.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com/wp-content/uploads/20240831175017/M5A9806-Enhanced-NR-1024x683.jpg)
Floreana Mockingbirds – juvenile (left) and adult. Photo by Alex Lamoreaux.