Take a Second Look

On the western slope of the Paracas Peninsula, within the Paracas National Reserve, a 200 m (656 ft) tall "Candelabro" was etched into the sand 2,000 years ago. Nobody knows why. The trenches are only 60 cm (2 ft) deep, but they survived two millennia of wind and sand drifts.

A close-up look at the "Candelabro" shows how the wind has blown sand into the trenches. Still, the shape of the figure is still clearly visible. The six black spots on the top right of the figure are vultures. They are not 2,000 years old. ;-) To the left we can see footprints left behind by recent human visitation.

As our plane approaches the Sechura Desert, the Nazca Lines become visible below us.

Straight lines, triangles, trapezoids, circles, and figures come into view.

The Nazcans carved rectangles 30 cm (1 ft) deep into the desert floor and up hillsides. This was done by removing rocks and piling them in straight lines to form the lines' edges.

This geoglyph is known as the "Monkey". It is 110 m (360 ft) long.

The “Dog”

The "Astronaut" (also called the "Owlman") is unusual. It does not match the types of geoglyphs found elsewhere on the site and is located on the side of a hill. Some people believe the figure indicates extraterrestrial visitation or influence.

Triangles are visible to the left and right of the photo's center. From the tip of the triangles, long lines emerge that may go on for miles. This image clearly illustrates one of the major threats this precious UNESCO World Heritage Site faces: climate change. As rains become more frequent (as they have during the past few years), flash floods are likely to destroy the lines and geoglyphs. Also, with an increase in soil moisture, vegetation may grow among the lines and compromise the artwork.

The "Whale". The inclusion of this image is an indication of the Nazcan's awareness of the maritime environment.

The "Hummingbird" is probably the most famous of the geoglyphs at Nazca.

The Nazcans carved rectangles 30 cm (1 ft) deep into the desert floor and up hillsides. This was done by removing rocks and piling them in straight lines to form the lines' edges.

The "Condor" geoglyph is 136 m (446 ft) in size.

The Pan-American Highway starts in Alaska and ends in Patagonia, the southernmost tip of South America. The highway goes through the middle of the Nazca Lines. Perhaps this was not a UNESCO World Heritage Site when the highway was built.

The “Spiral” with the Pan American Highway in the background.

The Pan-American Highway starts in Alaska and ends in Patagonia, the southernmost tip of South America. The highway goes right through the Nazca Lines. The lines became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1994. The more than 75,000 ha (185,000 acres) large site in the Sechura Desert is too big to monitor effectively. Vandalism can be seen in many places.

The Ingenio Valley just north of the Lines utilizes runoff water from the Andes to grow crops. With people living in the area, it is difficult to understand why the Lines were only discovered as late as the 20th century.

The "Spider" is 46 m (151 ft) in length.

Several lines lead to rocky outcroppings on the desert floor, indicating this to be the nucleus of the design. It is possible that the rocky hill served as a place of worship for the Nazcans.

The purpose of lines in the middle of nowhere still represents a fascinating mystery.

The “Tree” with the “Hands” in the top left corner.

The “Parrot”

The “Frigate Bird” is 300 m (985 ft) long and 54 m (177 ft) wide.

The “Flamingo”

The “Flower”

The “Tree” with an elevated viewing platform on the right.

The "Lizard" was partially destroyed when the Pan-American Highway was built. At the top of the picture is a geoglyph depicting a tree. The towers on the left side of the picture show observation towers which allow visitors to view the geoglyphs from above.

Closer to the town of Paracas, vineyards are irrigated from aquifers in the middle of the desert.

The view from Cumberland Bay towards San Juan Bautista, the only populated town on Robinson Crusoe Island (off the west coast of Chile).

The hike to the National Park takes about 1 hour and requires an ascent of 300 m (1,000 ft). The picture shows the rustic entrance to the park.

The National Park is located in a valley with lush sub-tropical forest. The start of the boardwalk through the forest can be seen in the lower right.

This is a female “Juan Fernandez firecrown” (Sephanoides fernandensis). A VERY rare bird, indeed. While walking along the boardwalk, she perched on a branch in front of me and posed for a picture. The male of this species is bright red. Currently, only +/- 400 of this species remain alive on earth.

The island’s volcanic origins are evident in the deep valleys and remnants of calderas rising abruptly from the ocean floor.

The valley is home to many endemic species which can only be found on Robinson Crusoe Island. In the foreground is “giant rhubarb” or “dinosaur food” (Gunnera peltata). The leaves can reach a diameter of up to 2 m (6.5 ft)

The fruiting structure of Gunnera peltata.

View of Robinson Crusoe Island.

The boardwalk through the National Park.

A more prevalent hummingbird species on Robinson Crusoe Island is the “green-backed firecrown” (Sephanoides sephanoides). It occupies the same territory as the S. fernandensis, but is, for some reason, less vulnerable to attacks by rats and feral cats. This is a female.

This plant is locally known as “Juan Bueno” (Rhaphithamnus venustus). It is a member of the verbena family and only exists on Robinson Crusoe Island. It, too, is threatened by habitat loss due to the introduction of invasive plant species (especially blackberry). The bright blue-violet flowers are a main source of nectar for the critically endangered Juan Fernandez firecrown.

The male green-backed firecrown features bright red-orange feathers on his forehead.

The view of Cumberland Bay from approximately 300 m (1,000 ft) elevation.

Main street in San Juan Bautista.

The ceiba tree in Panama (Ceiba trischistandra) is special. It loses its leaves during the tropical dry season but continues to photosynthesize through its green trunk and branches. When the tree is young and immature, it is covered with significant spikes, protecting the soft wood from damage by animals. The tree also produces cotton-like fluff which was used to stuff pillows and dolls.

The ceiba tree in Panama (Ceiba trischistandra) is special. It loses its leaves during the tropical dry season but continues to photosynthesize through its green trunk and branches. When the tree is young and immature, it is covered with significant spikes, protecting the soft wood from damage by animals. The tree also produces cotton-like fluff which was used to stuff pillows and dolls.

The “Park de la Reserva” is a park in downtown Lima, known for its spectacular and distinct fountains. At night, many of the 13 fountains dance to music and are lit up by colourful lasers. Some fountains are interactive, inviting visitors to enter and play in the water.

The “Park de la Reserva” is a park in downtown Lima, known for its spectacular and distinct fountains. At night, many of the 13 fountains dance to music and are lit up by colourful lasers. Some fountains are interactive, inviting visitors to enter and play in the water.

The “Park de la Reserva” is a park in downtown Lima, known for its spectacular and distinct fountains. At night, many of the 13 fountains dance to music and are lit up by colourful lasers. Some fountains are interactive, inviting visitors to enter and play in the water.

The “Park de la Reserva” is a park in downtown Lima, known for its spectacular and distinct fountains. At night, many of the 13 fountains dance to music and are lit up by colourful lasers. Some fountains are interactive, inviting visitors to enter and play in the water.

A pair of red-legged cormorants (Phalacrocorax gaimardi). Among these birds, there is no visual difference between male and female. They do not live in colonies as most of their 40 cormorant cousins do. These fishers are very attractive and feature beautiful eyes.

Fishermen maneuver their rickety wooden boat among the islets of the Palomino archipelago. They dive into the ice-cold water to collect scallops.

Inca terns (Larosterna inca) on Palomino Island.

Peruvian boobies (Sula variegata) are abundant along the South American coast. They dive-feed for mackerel and anchovies.

Here, at the Cerro Tololo Inter-American Astronomical Observatory near Vicuña, Coquimbo, Chile, a new supernova was discovered in the galaxy ESO 365-G16, located 370 million light years from Earth. It has a mass eight times that of our Sun. The discovery was made on Saturday, December 7, 2013.

At low tide, a striated heron (Butorides striata) eyes a crab in the mud flats of Isla Corazon near Puerto Portovelo, Ecuador.

White ibis (Eudocrimus albus) at Isla Corazon, Ecuador.

This is the perfectly shaped volcano “Osorno” near the Chilean town of Puerto Varas.

This is the perfectly shaped volcano “Osorno” near the Chilean town of Puerto Varas. Lake Llanquihue is in the foreground.

Run aground on the rocks in 1963 near the town of Puerto Eden (in the southern Chilean Fjords), the “MV Captain Leonidas” rests in the Messier Canal. The German-built vessel (built in 1937) was ship-wrecked by its own captain in an insurance fraud. The sinking of the ship, which had sugar in its cargo hold, went wrong. All 25 crew were rescued by the Chilean Navy and the captain was thrown in jail. He lost his captain’s license for life. The wreck now serves as a solar-powered lighthouse.

The black-browed albatross (Thalassarche melanophris).

The black-browed albatross (Thalassarche melanophris).

The black-browed albatross (Thalassarche melanophris).

They are the sentinels of the world’s oceans, the essence of beauty and grace, soaring for days without effort while travelling thousands of miles across the southern hemisphere. Soon, the black-browed albatross (Thalassarche melanophris), which is the most common of the albatross species, may have a novel reason to roam the cold sub-Antarctic waters: to spy on illegal fishing.

It all began with simple GPS devices attached to the birds to track their movements across the southern oceans. Scientists soon realised that approximately 80% of the birds follow fishing boats to snatch discarded fish and fish waste. It was long suspected that many boats fishing illegally in “Exclusive Economic Zones” (EEZ) turn off their automatic beacons (transponders) for fear of detection and thus escape enforcement. This led to the idea of attaching radar detectors to albatrosses (the captains of illegal fishing vessels generally leave the radar turned on to avoid collisions with icebergs or other ships). The solar-powered equipment, which weighs only 65 grams and is attached to the birds’ backs, is monitored via satellite and allows authorities to determine which fishing vessels have their transponders turned on, and which ships do not.

During a recent research project, scientists monitored 169 “equipped” albatrosses and determined that 1/3 of all ships plying the Southern Ocean have their transponders turned off while fishing illegally. As it turns out, albatrosses may very well become a new weapon for authorities in their fight against illegal fishing and, by consequence, help slow the depletion of ocean resources. Good news in a world awash with bad environmental predictions.

The most southern manned lighthouse in the world is precariously positioned on the rocks of Cape Horn. Maintained by the Chilean Navy, the station consists of a residence, utility building, chapel, and lighthouse. This remote and wind-swept place is home to a navy officer, his wife and young daughter. Nobody else lives on the island which represents the very most southern tip of South America.

Cape Horn is the northern edge of the Drake Passage, the narrowest part between the South American Continent and the Antarctic Peninsula. Enormous quantities of water pushed through this narrow strait by the Antarctic Circumpolar Current, whip up strong winds and huge waves. With wind speeds reaching up to 220 km/h (137 mi/h), through the centuries, it is no wonder that an estimated 10,000 sailors have lost theirs lives trying to round the Cape. To honour the souls lost in these waters, a touching memorial was installed near the Cape Horn lighthouse in 1992. Consisting of 10 seven-meter high metal plates, the memorial depicts an albatross with its wings spread out. The plaque near the structure reads:

I, the albatross that waits at the end of the world

I am the forgotten souls of the sailors lost,

Rounding Cape Horn from all the seas of the world.

But die they did not in the fierce waves,

For today towards eternity, in my wings they soar,

In the last crevice of the Antarctic winds.

With wind speeds reaching up to 220 km/h (137 mi/h), through the centuries, it is no wonder that an estimated 10,000 sailors have lost theirs lives trying to round the Cape Horn. To honour the souls lost in these waters, a touching memorial was installed near the Cape Horn lighthouse in 1992. Consisting of 10 seven-meter high metal plates, the memorial depicts an albatross with its wings spread out.

Rocky outcroppings lashed by ocean waves near Cape Horn.

The memorial and lighthouse at Cape Horn are bathed in the last rays of the evening light.

Rocky outcroppings lashed by ocean waves near Cape Horn.

At the terminus of the Pan-American Highway there is a boardwalk leading to a beautiful view of the Beagle Channel near Ushuaia, Argentina. This is literally the end of the road for many adventurers who travel the highway by bike, motorcycle, car, or camper from Alaska to Ushuaia.

The town of Ushuaia (Argentina) is the gateway to Antarctica for many scientific supply vessels and tourists.

This Magellanic penguin (Spheniscus magellanicus) caught a tiny fish.

This Magellanic penguin mom is helping her chick shed the baby fluff.

Falkland Island landscape.

Gentoo penguin (Pygoscelis papua)

Gentoo penguin (Pygoscelis papua)

Gentoo penguin (Pygoscelis papua)

Moulting juvenile male southern elephant seal (Mirounga leonina) on East Falkland Island. Fully grown male elephant seals can weigh as much as two hippopotamuses. Seemingly helpless on land, they become agile and skilled swimmers in water. Males spend as much as 80% of their time in the ocean where they can dive for up to two hours to a depth of over 1,600 m (1 mile). They only come on land during the breeding season. Breeding males are called “beachmasters” and can weigh 10 times as much as a female.

Juvenile male southern elephant seal (Mirounga leonina) on East Falkland Island.

Moulting juvenile male southern elephant seal (Mirounga leonina) on East Falkland Island. The nose of this elephant seal is infested with a parasitic mite which causes the seal to suffer from a thick nasal discharge and frequent snorting.

On the Falkland Islands, turkey vultures (Cathartes aura falklandicus) perform an important function in the environment: they clean up messes. Here they work on the remnants of a sheep carcass. With over 500,000 sheep roaming across the wilds of the Falkland Islands, there is never a shortage of food.