Sadly there's some bad news to start off with this week. The penguins that were breeding in the open last week I was telling
you about - not one of the nests are left. All three nests have been abandoned, the remains of their eggs taken by the Kelp
Gulls laying close by. Photo on the side shows you the area where the nests were that have subsequently been abandoned.
The next two photo's down the side show you the eggs that have been predated by the kelp Gulls.
It's concerning that the penguins are already struggling in the heat. February is still on its way and is normally
the hottest time of the year here in South Africa. Once abandoned, the penguins can only relay in about 45 days time, so
we'll be watching these areas to see if and when the penguins return.
News from our nests that we'll be updating you on during the season:
Nest 1 has 1 egg only - so it looks like that adult has also abandoned.
Nest 2, our pair of nesting penguins are still together
Nest 5 only has 1 egg, so possibly abandoned as well
Nest 4 has an adult incubating with 2 eggs, so that's also looking good
Nest 3 has an adult incubating with 2 eggs, so that's looking good
Will keep you posted on those.
It's not just African Penguins that breed on Dyer Island. Cape Cormorants (Phalacrocorax capensis) breed here in their
thousands. The count for this season is 39 935 breeding pairs. They started breeding in September 2008, but a storm with
strong winds destroyed most of the nests in early September. The birds relayed and now many of the chicks are at an age
where they are ready to fledge. Photo 10 shows many of the fledglings around the jetty and shallow bay area.
On one of my rounds around the island this week I came across this poor Cape Cormorant. It had a piece of fishing line
around its head like a noose (see last two pictures down the side). The hook was caught in a piece of kelp so as I
approached the bird, it couldn't fly away but the noose got tighter. Fortunately the line hadn't pulled so tight that it had cut in to the bird's skin and I was
able to loosen the noose, slip it over the head and set it free. It's so disheartening that areas like these offshore
islands which are supposed to be a safe haven for breeding birds are still impacted by human activities with litter
constantly washing up on the shoreline.
So that's it for this week. Tune in next week for some more island
stories….
Nest 3 has an adult incubating with 2 eggs, so that's looking good
