Before joining the ATF I was fortunate enough to visit the South Atlantic Ocean islands of Tristan da Cunha and Nightingale. The three month trip was one I will never forget.
Below: The view of Nightingale Island from the ocean
On Nightingale Island I spent 11 weeks doing research on the endangered single island endemic Wilkins’ Bunting. I was greeted by the sight of breeding Sooty and Atlantic Yellow-nosed Albatrosses on a daily basis, whilst the odd Tristan Albatross flew past the islands generally following a nearby fishing vessel. Northern Rockhopper Penguin colonies can be found in the tussock grassland along the coast, which grows up to three metres tall. Various species of burrowing petrels from Great Shearwaters and Broad-billed Prions to White-faced Storm Petrels breed on Nightingale Island. The nights are filled with a cacophony of noises that take some getting used to. Regularly going out in the evenings to do night-birding yielded some amazing experiences of handling seabirds like the Little Shearwater, Soft-plumaged Petrel as well as the tiny Common Diving Petrel. It was a real privilege to have had these experiences.
Below: Atlantic Yellow-nosed Albatross with chick
Seabirds, in particular the charismatic albatrosses, have for a long time been of particular interest to me and their plight certainly is concerning. It is encouraging to see bird scaring lines being deployed for every trawl in South Africa and generally we now observe few interactions with the warp cables.
Now into the winter months and peak time of the year for seabirds I am out to sea as often as possible to further ensure that the necessary mitigation measures are in place to continue to keep incidents of mortality as low as possible. It is such a privilege to sit and watch thousands of seabirds on a daily basis as they scavenge for discards from the vessels. During my time with the task force I aim to ensure that albatrosses of all the species will roam safely in our oceans.