|
A Cape Town Pelagic trip left Simonstown
on Saturday 12 March guided by Cape Town Pelagics
guide Barrie Rose.
When one considers that the ‘La
Nina’ weather pattern has led to a summer of the most
consistent and persistent south-east gales for more
than 30 years, then any pelagic trip that gets out
to sea is indeed fortunate. This week was no different
with the wind blowing right into the night prior to
the trip. By the morning, calm conditions prevailed
across False Bay and the smooth ride to Cape Point
was enjoyed by all. A few Cape Gannets
flew alongside us and 2 or 3 Arctic Skuas
(Parasitic Jaegers) provided some excitement.
Two miles before Cape Point we came upon the first
of 3 rafts of Cory’s Shearwaters totalling
some 100 birds. This unusual sighting was obviously
a result of the previous few days wind. Some Sooty
Shearwaters were in attendance.
At Cape Point we were met with a
3m swell but were not impeded in any way as there
was no wind. The steam out to 15 miles provided us
with White-chinned Petrels, Great
Shearwaters, Sabine’s Gull and
a few Shy Albatrosses. At this point
the ski-boat fraternity were reporting no trawlers
or long-liners on our course. One sportfisher did
however report fishing activity some 17 miles W-NW
of our position. Our skipper, made the decision to
steam out to the position 32 miles from Cape Point.
We are greatly indebted to him for turning a good
day’s seabirding into a spectacular experience!
The extra hour’s run to the trawler and long-liners
accumulated more species; a Manx Shearwater,
Black-browed Albatross, Indian
Yellow-nosed Albatross, Wilson’s
Storm-Petrel and a brief view of a small
flock of Grey (Red) Phalarope.
Our first stops were at 2 hake
long-liners where we got up close and personal with
all the species seen on the trip out and added Atlantic
Yellow-nosed Albatross and European
Storm-Petrel. Just when everyone thought
we’d seen a bird numbers spectacle, a trawler, ‘Harvest
Gardenia’ moved into our area. This vessel had upwards
of 2000 birds in its wake squabbling over the waste
fish being discarded. We spent 30 awesome minutes
amongst this screaming flock before heading back to
Cape Point.
Some way in we stopped for a pair
of Grey (Red) Phalaropes which
provided excellent views. A small Oceanic Blue
Shark and large shoals of Skipjack Tuna provided
a rounded wildlife experience.
After enjoying lunch just inside
Cape Point, we headed for Partridge Point to view
the Bank Cormorant colony before heading
back to Simonstown. It is noted that at least one
Bank Cormorant nest is now occupied by White-breasted
Cormorants with chicks.
Species seen and approximate numbers:
Shy Albatross - 150
Black-browed Albatross - 200
Indian Yellow-nosed Albatross - 6
Atlantic Yellow-nosed Albatross - 20
Southern Giant Petrel - 1
White-chinned Petrel 1000
Great Shearwater - 2000
Sooty Shearwater - 100
Cory’s Shearwater - 120
Manx Shearwater - 1
Wilson’s Storm-Petrel - 400
European Storm-Petrel 20
Subantarctic Skua - 5
Arctic Skua - 6
Sabine’s Gull 40
Grey (Red) Phalarope 2 and 6
Common Tern 20 and coastal
Swift Tern coastal and to 8mls
Sandwich Tern - coastal
Kelp Gull 150 and coastal
Cape Cormorant coastal and to 5mls
White-breasted Cormorant - coastal
Bank Cormorant - coastal
African Penguin coastal
Cape Fur Seal 40+
Oceanic Blue Shark - 1
Skipjack Tuna
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 Barrie Rose.
To book, simply email
or phone us, or submit a
booking enquiry online.
|
