Animals of Sal
Cape Verde’s animals reflect its isolated island environment, with unique bird species, nesting sea turtles, and rich marine life surrounding its coasts.
Turtle Watching on Sal Island: All You Need to Know
Turtle Watching: Sal Island is famed for a rare natural spectacle. Every summer, its beaches host thousands of nesting loggerhead sea turtles (Caretta caretta).
Humpback Whale: The Beautiful Giant in Cape Verde
Humpback whale is among the most recognisable and widely studied of the great whales, known for acrobatic breaches, haunting songs, and long pectoral fins.
Loggerhead Sea Turtle: The Most Fascinating Guest on Sal
The loggerhead turtle (Caretta caretta) is a type of sea turtle known for its large size, distinct reddish-brown shell, and powerful jaws. They are among the largest sea turtle species, with adults reaching an average length of around 3.5 feet (1 meter) and weighing between 200 and 400 pounds (90 to 180 kilograms). However, some exceptional individuals can grow even larger.
Sal’s Animal & Maritime Life
Cape Verde’s animal life is shaped by the islands’ isolation, arid climate, and Atlantic location, resulting in a limited but unique range of species, many of which are found nowhere else on Earth. Among the most notable are the loggerhead sea turtles that nest on Sal and Boa Vista beaches, as well as endemic birds such as the Iago Sparrow, Cape Verde Warbler, and the rare Raso Lark.
The surrounding waters are far richer, home to humpback whales, spinner dolphins, flying fish, and reef sharks, making marine life a central part of the islands’ biodiversity. On land, animals are more discreet: goats roam freely, introduced donkeys and cats have adapted to the dry terrain, and reptiles like the Cape Verde wall gecko thrive in stone walls and abandoned buildings.
Conservation efforts — particularly for birds and turtles — have grown in recent years, supported by both local initiatives and international partnerships. The fauna of Cape Verde may be modest in number, but it holds ecological value and a distinct island character.
Dolphins: The Wonderful Marine Mammals of Sal Island
Sal’s sightings often include mixed groups, such as bottlenose dolphins with spotted dolphins, and occasionally with pilot or beaked whales.
Birds of Cabo Verde: The Most Popular Species
Cabo Verde is an ornithologists’ paradise. It is a fantastic place for birdwatching. There are many bird species here, both native only to the islands of the archipelago (and nowhere else) and many typically African and migratory species. Below is a list of over 20 bird species observed on Sal and the other islands. How many of them have you seen?
Little Egret: This Amazing White Bird With Long Legs
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In-Depth Look at Lemon Sharks in the Shark Bay
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Garoupa Vermelha: The Beautiful and Tasty Red Grouper Fish
The name “garoupa vermelha” encompasses several species that patrol the underwater territories of Cape Verde.
Flying Fish: Crazy and Beautiful Sea Gliders of the Sky
Flying fish don’t truly fly like birds. Instead, they glide on extended fins. With a swipe of a tail, they launch themselves out of the water at over 60 km/h.
Iago Sparrow: Endemic and Easy to Spot on Sal
These cute little birds you observe on the streets and in the crowns of trees are far cousins of European sparrows and – contrary to popular belief – didn’t migrate to the islands from far away. These little guys are Iago sparrows (Passer iagoensis) and are endemic to Cape Verde. That’s why they are often called Cabo Verde sparrows by professional and hobby ornithologists. Iago sparrows occur on all islands of the archipelago besides of Fogo, and on most of them it is quite common.
Have You Seen This Beautiful Crimson-Speckled Flunkey?
The crimson-speckled flunkey (Utetheisa pulchella), first described by Carl Linnaeus in his 1758 10th edition of Systema Naturae, is a widespread moth that occurs naturally in northern and central parts of Africa, the Mediterranean, Near East and Central Asia. However, it can travel far north with plumes of warm air during the summer or autumn and is observed sporadically even in England (less than 100-200 records in the last century).