Congratulations to Elisa Piscopiello for her evocative description of blue-footed booby courtship!
Communications Manager
We have been running our hugely popular photography competition for many years, but not everyone is a whizz behind the camera, so this year we wanted to give you another way of expressing yourself and sharing the magic of Galapagos.
We invited you to get creative and write a short account – no more than 250 words – of a memorable moment in the Galapagos Islands, and we had some wonderful entries.
The competition was judged by GCT Ambassador Henry Nicholls, author of Lonesome George: The Life and Loves of a Conservation Icon and The Galapagos: A Natural History. After careful deliberation, Henry picked out Elisa Piscopiello as our winner, for her evocative description of blue-footed booby courtship.
“From the opening sentence, Elisa pulls the reader back to Galapagos,” said Henry. “In a few short paragraphs, she uses colour, touch, sound and sight to bring the tender courtship dance of the blue-footed boobies to life. There is a real sense of the precious, fleeting nature of a moment like this, but also the generous promise that nature has many more such spectacles to gift.”
In a few short paragraphs, (Elisa) uses colour, touch, sound and sight to bring the tender courtship dance of the blue-footed boobies to life.
By Elisa Piscopiello
The full moon glows high, gently kissed by the timid sunrise, painting the horizon a soft blue.
In this February dawn, the air is neither humid nor hot. A tender breeze caresses my skin, and the soothing sound of waves breaking against the rocks makes me realise I have awakened in paradise.
Yesterday’s expedition is now a cherished memory, as today I am ready for a new adventure.
All is quiet. All is perfect. Amidst my footsteps and the rhythmic waves, your voice grows louder as I draw closer. Then, I see you.
You stand boldly on the lava rocks, looking up at the glowing moon. With open arms, you sing, showing your love with no fear, in this perilous yet heavenly sanctuary. You pick up a twig for your patiently waiting female, and gracefully raise your rubbery blue feet in a rhythmic motion. The way you approach her is mesmerising. Together, you begin raising your feet in synchrony, drawing close, smelling, feeling, kissing.
Your dance is the most wonderful spectacle nature gifts me with today.
If only could I grasp that moment again, but it will never be the same. I keep you close through the memory of your graceful singing and dancing, the serenity and love you shared. Grateful for having witnessed your joy, I find strength in your love, hopeful that you will feel it again and others will witness it too.
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