Column Animals

A bird flu outbreak is sweeping the globe. Its long-term effects are unclear

Avian influenza has killed millions of birds and other animals

By Erin Garcia de Jesús

Staff Writer

Two adult blue-footed boobies surrounded by dry vegetation are shown with two white, fluffy chicks in the center of a nest on the ground.

North Seymour island’s blue-footed boobies (shown) are popular with visitors to the Galápagos Islands. Monogamous pairs lay their eggs in open, poop-covered nests on the ground.

Erin Garcia de Jesús

As I step among poop-covered rocks toward the plateau of a small island in the Galápagos, a part of me rejoices.