Earthwatch 2004 Project: South African Penguins
Diary of Team 6
Day 1:
After meeting at the clocktower the team exchanged introductions and got to know one another over a delicious meal at a restaurant in the Waterfront . Due to bad weather we were unable to catch the ferry to the Island, instead we were fortunately provided with a luxurious house to spend the night in.
Day 2:
After catching the 9 o'clock ferry we arrived on Robben Island with a plentiful supply of food and lots of enthusiasm. After settling in to our new home we took a stroll down to the shore to look at Cormorants, penguins, oyster catchers and gulls.
Later that day we crammed into the back of the 'buckie' to tour the island and record the wildlife the highlights were: bontebok, Eland, springbok, steenbok, osterich and tern & gull colonies. We also got to see the famous quarry in which political prisoners were made to work.
That evening Bruce gave a presentation covering the history of the Island, it's wildlife and of course the penguins. He explained that there are 2 types of harmless snake and also gave us a crash course in ostrich self defense (i.e. lye down flat on ground; which may lead to possibility of being sat on).
Day 3:
Today we monitored existing nests. Our task was to record the number of adults and their band numbers and to grade any chicks according to their size and the amount of down for this we used categories from P1 ( just hatched) up to P4 (about to fledge) .
Back to house for lunch- minus electricity.
In the afternoon we drove out to conduct a malt count from the harbor beach.
Returned just before five to engage in some 'flushing'- this is the strange practice in which 11 penguins were trapped as they returned inland only to be pumped full of sea water and held upside down until they vomit the contents of their stomach. The food remains are used for research into the dietary habits of penguins. This exercise gave us volunteers the opportunity to do some hands on work by catching the birds, and we inevitably came away with some war wounds as the penguins got their revenge..
Back to house for 6.30- feasted on ostrich bolognaise- updated computer records.
Day 4:
In the morning we observed penguins on the shore (North East corner). We were told to turn any dead birds onto their backs and take off any tags.
On the way to do the nest monitoring Bruce caught a chameleon- she was heavily pregnant. We had to force our way through dense scrub to get to many of the nests. Mario explained that when penguins burrow into the land as birds grow the burrow collapses often killing the whole family.
After a long lunch it was time to conduct a 3-hour count of the two main penguin crossings for this we split into 2 teams and for each site we recorded (in 5 minute intervals) the no of penguins (and the direction they were traveling), animals, pedestrians and vehicles (and whether they were speeding).
BBQ for dinner- very tasty.
Day 5:
Today we split into 2 groups to conduct a beach clean up, we all worked hard collecting any litter and fishing wire. It seems that all the effort was worth it as even such a simple task can help to prevent animals getting injured.
Next we went on the prison tour in which we were guided by an ex political prisoner who informed us about the history of the prison and it's strict regime. We learnt about the censor's room and read a collection of cell stories, which charted first hand experiences of the prisoners themselves.
On the way back for lunch local builders alerted us to the fact that some penguins had set up home in some sheds on the building site. There was one adult that we promptly evicted and 2 sets of chicks which seemed to be abandoned, 2 were sent to Sancob with another injured bird, the remaining 2 are being monitored.
In the afternoon it was time to visit the hide, from which we could observe the penguins closely in their social context. To get a better look at the band numbers we moved to the beach, Philip and marius managed to spot lots of numbers through the scopes.
Day 6:
Today was frustrating as we were trapped inside due to bad weather. We used it as an opportunity to have a well deserved lye in. We pottered around the house, went for the odd walk and later went for a drive.
During our drive we spotted ostrich, springbok, steenbok and an injured eland.
After a lazy day Jeanie, Marius, Louise and Jenny rushed to the local pub to purchase much needed wine. Watched the Olympics.
Day 7:
Marius left the Island and Sylvia arrived.
|
