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A Cape Town Pelagics trip left Simonstown
on Saturday 11 September 2010 guided by Cape Town
Pelagics guide Bruce Dyer.
Several dozen Red-winged Starling
as well as Hartlaub’s and Kelp Gull
were conspicuous in the harbour prior to sailing.
We were given a safety brief and then headed off to
Cape Point. Several Swift Tern and Cape
Cormorant were roosting on the pipe in the harbour
and provided great views.
As we passed Boulders a solitary African
Penguin was spotted briefly on the surface. A
small group was seen distantly on a rock as we passed
their famous colony at Boulders. Southern Right
Whales were disconcertingly scarce and seemed
to have arrived later than in previous years.
We passed boats fishing for snoek, which
had numerous seabirds foraging for scraps. A species of Giant Petrel, which we did not see well enough
to determine which of the two species it was, many Kelp Gull, small numbers of White-chinned
Petrel and a solitary Brown (aka Subantarctic)
Skua added to the excitement. I suspect that this
skua may have been a juvenile because at least most
that occur at Marion Island had already returned there.
We stopped briefly in front of the awe-inspiring
cliffs of Cape Point - a great place to take memorable
photographs. Soon some Cape Gannets appeared
as we headed out to sea as well as several Sooty
Shearwaters and more White-chinned Petrels.
As we passed Bellows, an early Parasitic Jaeger
flew past us towards a feeding group of terns in the
distance. Moving ahead, birds became scarcer, a promising
sign that there may be concenrating around a fishing
vessels further offshore!
We spotted some long-line vessels bringing
in their catch. Small numbers of birds attended the
boat, providing good views of Shy and Black-browed
Albatross, a solitary Northern Giant Petrel,
fleeting glimpses of a Great Shearwater,
as well as a sprinkling of Pintado Petrels.
Good-sized Kingklip were observed at the long-line
fishing vessel and some were gratefully hauled on
board while a very large bull Cape Fur Seal
showed a memorable tug-of-war.
A trawler headed our way and hoped to add a few more
bird species to the list. While we expected more birds,
all the regular species were present and all provided
saturation close-up views! We bettered our views of
Great Shearwater and several small flocks of
Arctic Tern. A juvenile Indian Yellow-nosed
Albatross appeared briefly before vanishing into
the distance. We searched the wake for storm petrels
and soon located a Wilson’s Storm Petrel. Fair
numbers of Cape Fur Seal also attended the
trawler.
Progress back towards Simonstown was pleasant
with a following sea. We spotted several Humpback
Whales off Smitswinkel Bay and were quite nervous
because they all sounded while we were some distance
away. We briefly stopped at Partridge Point to view
the colony of highly endangered Bank Cormorant.
On another rock nested a small colony of breeding
White-breasted Cormorant. A pair of African
Black Oystercatchers showed off well on the pipe
inside the harbour. An adult Crowned Cormorant
provided the finale atop a pole at our docking bay
while we tied up our boat.
Bird species seen (22) and approximate
numbers:
Shy Albatross <100 (adults and immatures present)
Black-browed Albatross <100 (mostly adults, few immatures
present)
Indian Yellow-nosed Albatross 1
White-chinned Petrel >500
Pintado Petrel <100
Northern Giant Petrel 1 (2 unidentified Giant Petrel’s
also seen)
Wilson’s Storm Petrel <10
Sooty Shearwater >100
Great Shearwater <5
Cape Gannet <250
Sub-antarctic Skua 4
Parasitic Jaeger 1
Kelp Gull >100
Hartlaub’s Gull >10
Cape Cormorant >1000
Crowned Cormorant 1
Bank Cormorant 16 pairs
White-breasted Cormorant 10 pairs
Swift Tern >100
Arctic Tern <10
African Penguin 1
African Black Oystercatcher 2
Mammals:
Cape Fur Seal >300
Humpback Whale 3-5
A message from Cape Town Pelagics: A huge thank
you to our experienced skippers who are able to safely
lead us to the best birding areas and skillfully manoeuvre
the boat into just the best position while all on
board are busy concentrating on the birds! Coordinating
a pelagic trip over a year in advance with guests
from all across South Africa and different countries
around the world requires an organised office team.
We thank them for their special eye for detail - and
for the sometimes last-minute rearrangements and frustration
if the weather delays the trip to another day! Our
biggest thank-you is to our Cape Town Pelagics guides
who take time out of their work, often involving seabirds
and conservation, and time away from their families,
to provide our guests with a world-class birding experience.
Cape Town Pelagics donates all it profits to seabirds,
and so all the participants who join the trip make
a contribution towards bird research and conservation
a big thank you from all of us.
Trip report by Cape Town Pelagics guide Bruce Dyer.
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or phone us, or submit a
booking enquiry online.
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