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Galapagos Islands with Dr. Linda Cayot of the Galapagos Conservancy

Naturalists

Linda Cayot
Richard Polatty

Top: Observing Geochelone porteri, the Santa Cruz Island species of Galapagos giant tortoise. (Weston Walker)

Linda Cayot

Dr. Linda Cayot has been involved with Galapagos tortoises for nearly 30 years. She first came to Galapagos in 1981 to study giant tortoises for her PhD from Syracuse University. She has stayed close to the Islands ever since.

Linda served as herpetologist of the Charles Darwin Foundation (CDF) from 1988 to 1998. She supervised the Galapagos National Park’s giant tortoise breeding and rearing program at the Tortoise Rearing Center on Santa Cruz. One of the greatest challenges was to achieve successful reproduction by Lonesome George, the only remaining member of the subspecies Geochelone nigra abingdoni from Pinta.

Linda has also served as Head of Science at the Charles Darwin Research Station and the Charles Darwin Foundation.

Linda is currently the Science Advisor to the Galapagos Conservancy, Inc., a nonprofit organization dedicated to the long-term protection of the Galapagos Islands.

Most recently Linda participated in the re-introduction of tortoises to Pinta Island, which took place May 17, 2010. You can see a video of this reintroduction by the Today Show and hear Linda speak by Reading more.

Richard Polatty

Richard is INCA's Galápagos Guide Coordinator, managing our guiding schedule and helping our guides with maintaining our commitment to excellence.

Richard has been guiding exclusively for INCA's Galápagos Island trips since 1990. He began guiding in the Galápagos in 1985 and quickly gained our attention with rave reviews.

Richard has also been guiding expeditions in Antarctica for over 18 years. He has been an expedition leader on four different ships and is a veteran of nearly 60 round trips to the Antarctic. Additionally, he has done research with the Antarctic Site Inventory for Oceanites (funded by the National Science Foundation).

Richard is originally from Atlanta, Ga but has been living in Ecuador for 26 years. He was educated at Vanderbilt University (undergrad study) and Emory University (graduate study).

"The pattern of the day was perfect, Richard was incredible, the snorkeling divine, and the crew so, so appreciated. What a wonderful group of people to take care of us, and we certainly did feel pampered and well cared for. So incredible having those gentle, respectful, good natured young men help us at every step."—Ellen Hayward, Fayetteville, AR

Some of Richard's accomplishments are as follows:

	working as naturalist in Galapagos for 26 years
	principal author of the "CD-ROM encyclopedia of Galapagos" under the auspices of the Charles Darwin Foundation
	chief naturalist on the M/V Bucanero in Galapagos 1985-1988
	chief naturalist Inca Floats 1990 to present
	spokesperson for Pentax binoculars and featured in full page ads in many international magazines (such as Audubon and Smithsonian)
	Board of Directors and lecturer for Siempre Verde Cloud Forest (in northern Ecuador) 1996 to present
	expedition leader maiden voyage of Polar Circle (now the HMS Endurance) 1990
	research associate for the Oceanites Foundation and researcher for the Antarctic Site Inventory funded by the US National Science Foundation 1992 to present
	avid astronomer (ground own telescope lenses and constructed telescopes) taught astronomy classes for the Galapagos National Park Naturalists Course
	travelled internationally to witness and photograph 7 total solar eclipses
	Expedition leader on over 50 expeditions to Antarctica
	collected late laying penguin eggs (under permit with the British Antarctic Survey) for various institutions
	traveled in over 70 countries (including trans-Siberian express in early 70s)
	Active Pilot with land and seaplane ratings in the US and Ecuador (patrol plane pilot with Galapagos National Park Service)