Tortuga islet (der Südküste von Isabela vorgelagert)

Diving-Tour to the small isla Tortuga/closed to the coast of Isabela Island  from/to Puerto Villamil, Isabela bookable: Dive sites of Tortuga Island (0h20), La Viuda (0h20), Roca Union (0h30) and 4 Hermanos Islands (0h45), with a local speedboat, known as fibra.
A minimum of two divers are required and a maximum of 7 divers is recommended.
The dive day consists of two boat dives, including a picnic lunch.
Prices vary according to the destination.
You may bring your own diving equipment for comfort. Alternatively, you can hire dive equipment. Tanks and weights are provided with the package.
PADI dive course are available upon request. Please ask the Galapagos-Specialist Christian Frobeen, E-mail: info@frobeen.de, www.galapagos.de
 

The diving spot closed to Isabela, Turtle island, is a sight that looks from another planet. It’s a submerged volcano and only a “half moon” of it is above the water. The closest thing similar to this place I can think of is Santorini in Greece. However this one is uninhabited and in the middle of nowhere.
 
Sea lions plays with you, a couple of mantas passes by, huge schools of fish and again you are visited by another huge whale shark.

Racer snakes on Galapagos are constrictors and only mildly venomous. They are known to prey on lava lizards, geckos, insects, iguanas, mice, rats and hatchlings of several bird species. They are not at all aggressive towards humans and could not do much harm if they were to attack after being threatened. Racers tend to be dark brown with stripes or spots.
There is some confusion over the number of species of racer snake found in Galapagos due to poor research. The latest research suggests that there are: the Galapagos racer (Pseudalsophis biserialis) from San Cristobal and Floreana – though it is locally extinct on Floreana and now only found on nearby islets; the Espanola racer (Pseudalsophis hoodensis) from Espanola and adjacent islets; Santa Cruz racer (Pseudalsophis dorsalis) from Santa Cruz, Baltra, Santa Fe and adjacent islets; Fernandina racer (Pseudalsophis occidentalis) from Fernandina, Isabela, and Tortuga; banded racer (Pseudalsophis slevini) from Pinzon; and the striped racer (, ) from Baltra and Santa Cruz.
It is the Fernandina racer which has been observed hunting for marine fish from rock pools and the shallows around Fernandina. The British biologist Dr. Godfrey Merlen was the first scientist to ever see this behaviour happening as he noted up to 15 individual snakes slithering around the lava rock pools around Cape Douglas. This is a unique behaviour of terrestrial snake not observed anywhere else in the world. The racers on Fernandina were also the stars of BBC´s Planet Earth II where they were filmed hunting juvenile marine iguanas.
Racer snakes can be found in Galapagos on most of the major islands, though they are now locally extinct on Floreana.  The snakes are found throughout the year, but unlike many other Galapagos animals they are shy of humans and will hide away making them reasonably tough to spot without looking for them specifically. They are diurnal, most active around dawn and dusk, and often rest around midday.  The native snake population has been decimated by introduced species such as cats, pigs and feral goats which forage for their eggs.
 

• Animal Group: snakes
• Scientific Name (depending from the islands): Pseudalsophis biserialis, Pseudalsophis hoodensis, Pseudalsophis dorsalis, Pseudalsophis occidentalis, Pseudalsophis slevini, Pseudalsophis steindachneri
• Animal Average Size: 80 cm bis 1,20 m
• Animal Average Weight: 8 – 10 kg