Banks Bay

Banks Bay lies at the northern tip of Fernandina where the island's slopes meet a deep submarine shelf, creating a transition zone between the shallow reef community and the open pelagic realm. The bay is named for Joseph Banks and was historically a gathering point for whaling vessels — today it gathers Galapagos penguins, sea lions, and occasionally whale sharks at the productive mixing zone where the Cromwell upwelling meets the warmer Panama Current. The topography features dramatic lava walls dropping to 30 meters and an unusually rich population of king angelfish, one of the most vivid reef fish in the Eastern Pacific.