We've been working with the UK's amazing Overseas Territories for almost 20 years, but are still only scratching the surface of understanding their wonderful wildlife. One of the most remote and little known Territory environments is found in the Pitcairn Islands, the last remaining British Territory in the Pacific. Home to the extremely friendly descendants of the Mutiny on the Bounty, the Territory is made up of one inhabited island (Pitcairn) and three uninhabited ones.
We have a longstanding programme underway to restore one of these off-islands (Henderson Island World Heritage Site), but were conscious that the environment of Pitcairn itself is in many ways less studied than that of its uninhabited neighbours. Staff members have spent ten days on Pitcairn in consultation with the local community in 2010 and 2012, but as far as we are aware almost no general terrestrial conservationists have spent more than a week or two on the island. No one therefore really has any idea how big or threatened the population of the unique local bird, the Pitcairn reed-warbler, is, several of the island's unique plant species may be down to just a few individuals, and what invertebrate species exist on this fertile volcanic pinnacle is an almost untouched world still awaiting exploration and discovery.
We've therefore sent our new Overseas Territories Officer, Andy Schofield, to Pitcairn for three months to work alongside the Pitcairners and try to answer some of these questions. We're very excited to see what he may find:
If an eleven hour flight to Los Angeles wasn’t enough, add on a further eight and a half to Tahiti and another four hours to Mangareva in the Gambier Islands and I still hadn’t reached my destination!
Thankfully a day's stop over in Tahiti allowed me some time to run around and see some endemic birds of the Island (Tahiti Monarch, Tahiti Kingfisher, Tahiti Swift and the Grey-Headed Fruit Dove). All of which were quite obliging and afforded me great views thanks to the expert Guidance of Caroline and Jean-Kape from MANU. The day also allowed by a stroke of luck, an opportunity to appear on Tahiti and French Polynesian TV for an hour long live television show which was looking at the subjects of climate change, the work of MANU on the endangered parrot (the Orea) as it’s known in Tahiti and now also the work and adventures of a UK Overseas Territories Officer from England. This was followed by a live phone in to the studio, all I can say is thank you to Jean-Kape for his translation as my French didn’t stand up to a “phone in”!
(Myself, Caroline (right), and Jean-Kape (far right) just before going on air at Tahiti and French Polynesia TV studios, Papeete)
I still had another two days on a boat (The Claymore II) before I would finally get to the end of my journey. Where am I going? Pitcairn Island! One of the lesser known UK Overseas Territories in the South Pacific Ocean. A mere stone's throw - at just under 10,000 miles from my desk at RSPB, HQ, Bedfordshire.
The group of Islands known as the Pitcairns (which also includes Henderson, Ducie and Oeno Islands) are probably most famously known for its connection to Fletcher Christian and Captain Bligh and the story of “The Mutiny on the Bounty”. Pitcairn Island was where Fletcher Christian decided to land and set fire to his vessel “The Bounty” in 1789 in a bid to escape hanging for mutiny and remain with his new and now inseparable Tahitian wife Maimiti.
(The Claymore II tied up in Mangareva waiting to take me on the last leg of the journey to Pitcairn)
Two days on board a ship is not to everyone’s taste but for an avid seawathcher it was about to be the best days of the travelling so far. Less than an hour out of Mangareva and I had already seen Greater Frigatebird, Fairy Tern, Black Noddy, Brown Noddy, Red Tailed Tropicbird, Polynesian Shearwater, Christmas Island Shearwater, Blue Footed Booby and Tahiti Petrel! I now couldn’t wait to be back on deck for first light the next morning.
Sunrise the next morning in the middle of the Pacific Ocean was a sight to behold but my coffee hadn’t even got cold before the first rush of excitement as the first bird of the day appeared next to the boat, a Kermadec Petrel! Birds after this were few and far between but Murphy’s Petrel and the stunning Phoenix Petrel were well worth the waiting.
It was already dark by the time the Claymore dropped anchor in Bounty Bay and the only tell tale sign that we were close to our destination was one or two distant house lights that gave away we were so close to Adamstown but we would have to wait until the morning to see Pitcairn in all its glory.
Two of the ship’s crew had started to feed fish off the back of the boat and as a keen fisherman I had to investigate what they were up to, they had a big spotlight at the back of the boat that lit up a large area of the ocean and in turn attracted many fish including large shoals of the amazing Pacific Flying Fish that were shooting out of the water in all directions as well as Giant Trevally and at least two species of shark, the water was so clear it was like looking into an aquarium. They said that they were trying to attract shoals of bait fish and then in turn attract some Tuna.
“Tuna!” I said. “I’ve always wanted to catch a Tuna since I was a little boy, do you mind if I stay and watch?”. They both laughed and handed me a fishing rod and said “you best catch your own breakfast then” and in realising a childhood dream, I did!