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Puerto Villamil

Cantón Isabela, Galápagos · Ecuador

What have people found?

Galápagos reef octopus, orange cup coral and pale anemone turn up here more than at our other rock pools. Sally lightfoot crab, chocolate chip sea star and galapagos slate pencil urchin are the usual finds. ~84 distinct species have been recorded here, across at least 2 years of observations.

What is the best time to visit today?

Download the app to see the 7-day schedule.

See low tide times at Puerto Villamil for the next three days
  1. Sun 15 Novin the dark~0:00~12:00
  2. Mon 16 Novin the dark~1:00~13:00
  3. Tue 17 Novin the dark~2:00~14:00

Every low tide each day, in local time at the shore.

Plan the week in Intertidal
  • A tide chart for every day, with the best window marked
  • Identify what you find from a photo
  • An alert when a good daylight low is coming

When do people visit?

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Most observations come from January and March.

What should you know before visiting?

Arrive 45 minutes to an hour before low tide and leave as it turns. The water comes back faster than it left.
Grippy shoes beat sandals. Wet rock and algae are more slippery than they look. Rock pool safety
A rock pool is a fragile place. Look and photograph, take nothing. The rockpooling code

What lives at Puerto Villamil?

Species records from iNaturalist

Sally Lightfoot CrabGrapsus grapsus
Chocolate Chip Sea StarNidorellia armata
Lytechinus semituberculatusLytechinus semituberculatus
Galapagos Slate Pencil UrchinEucidaris galapagensis
Blue Sea StarPhataria unifascialis
Lollyfish Sea CucumberHolothuria atra
Panamic Cushion StarPentaceraster cumingi
Sea GrapesCaulerpa racemosa
Galápagos Reef OctopusOctopus oculifer
Orange Cup CoralTubastraea coccinea
Red Sun StarHeliaster cumingi
Gourd Rock SnailVasula melones
Pale AnemoneExaiptasia diaphana
Needle Sea UrchinDiadema mexicanum
Pavona giganteaPavona gigantea
Scan this rock pool on your next visit.

Every organism named, every visit logged to your journal.