The run to the Point itself was straightforward and relatively wind free with African Penguins dotted about in ‘rafts’ off Boulders and a mix of Swift Terns, Kelp Gulls and Cape Cormorants accompanying us for most of the way. After a safety stop to radio in our destination and estimated time of return we headed off in the general direction of a set of co-ordinates radioed to us by a sport fishing boat in the vicinity of a pole fishing vessel some twenty miles west of our position.
Sea conditions on the way were clear and calm with sightings of Cape Fur Seals basking here and there on the surface along with a surprise sighting of an oceanic Blue Shark and shortly afterwards a Thresher Shark, with its long and quite distinctive whip-tail in evidence, as it breached repeatedly just beyond Bellows Rock. Birdlife in general was ‘thin’ on the way out, apart from a single Pomarine Jaeger crossing our line of travel and several feeding flocks of Common Tern being harassed repeatedly by Parasitic Jaegers.
For the rest little else was in evidence other than the usual cast of inshore terns, gulls and cormorants. Cape Gannets and Sooty Shearwaters were conspicuous by their lack of abundance in spite of the presence of schooling baitfish in every direction around us.
On arriving at the fishing vessel we found we were not alone as an increasing number of sport fishing boats had converged on the same co-ordinates following reports of large shoals of Yellowfin Tuna converging on the area. This was hardly surprising as the water colour had switched from dark green to deep royal blue in keeping with a steady rise in sea temperature on the way out, with the occasional flying fish taking to the wing ahead of the bow wave, to add a tropical touch to the unfolding scene around us.
Pelagic birdlife was dominated along the way by Cory’s Shearwaters, a trans-equatorial summer migrant, flying by in lethargic flight or roosting on the surface in scattered groups. White-chinned Petrels were far less numerous with a few birds weaving back and forth in near windless conditions between the now flotilla sized fleet of assorted fishing boats trolling the area in search of tuna. First up on the albatross list for the day was an immature Black-browed Albatross followed by an adult Shy Albatross flapping about in a less than dynamic flight pattern due to a lack of wind. Here and there becalmed albatrosses could be seen in the vicinity and a number of close up views were obtained of both species as we made our way westwards in the general direction of a stern trawler on the distant horizon.
On the way we added Wilson’s Storm Petrel to the pelagic list followed by the first of two sightings of Great-winged Petrel careening above the wake of the ‘Harvest Saldanha’ as she steamed towards us with her bird-scaring lines very much in visual evidence. This was indeed an encouraging conservation sight following the BLSA seabird education initiative.
Above the gantry a Subantarctic Skua circled in purposeful flight as it eyed the offal shoot while several White-chinned Petrels criss-crossed the wake in close association with the usual entourage of Kelp Gulls. Add to this two Sabine’s Gulls dipping and swooping to pick up scraps in the lee of the trawler’s stern and you have some idea of the unfolding scene.
Next up the wake was a full adult Atlantic Yellow-nosed Albatross, with a particularly dark grey head and neck, that provided a number of repetitive sightings as it orbited around the trawler along with a number of Shy and Black-browed Albatross across the age class spectrum.
After an hour of running parallel to the trawler, while regularly checking the pelagic mix for new arrivals within the species mix, a Giant Petrel passed by at a range too far to ascertain the colour of the bill tip. For whatever reason the bird failed to return even after the trawl had been retrieved. This was most surprising as the surface was littered with small fish and other food items along the length of the wake.
Surprisingly too, no Cape Gannets or Cape Fur Seals were in attendance and neither were any storm petrels observed pattering about within the assortment of pelagic seabirds strung out along the wake. As we were about to move off to start our return run back to Simon’s Town an adult Indian Yellow-nosed Albatross arrived to give us four albatross species for the day.
On top of this we were treated to close-up views of a large Sunfish basking on the surface as another non-bird related bonus sighting for the day. By now the wind had died completely with most seabirds observed on the long run back to Cape Point loafing on the surface in scattered groups or flapping about lazily in ones and twos.
Roosting ‘rafts’ of Cory’s Shearwaters and White-chinned Petrels were carefully checked for a possible Manx Shearwater but nothing unusual was sighted other than a Northern Giant Petrel which cut across our wake before turning away with no repeat views on offer.
As we neared Cape Point we became aware of large concentrations of bait fish in every direction and, not surprisingly the presence of game fish all around us as they targeted the fish shoals to the delight of hundreds of Common Tern taking advantage of the feeding frenzy. A brief stop at Partridge Point provided good views of Bank Cormorant and Cape Fur Seal along with a single Black Oystercatcher feeding on the mussel encrusted boulders exposed by the low tide.
On the way back to Simon’s Town a late departing Southern Right Whale appeared unexpectedly in the vicinity of Ark Rock providing all on board with an extended view before presenting its flukes and disappearing out of sight as the grand finale to the day.
Species list with approximate numbers for the day is as follows:
Shy Albatross – 10
Black-browed Albatross – 15
Indian Yellow-nosed Albatross – 1
Atlantic Yellow-nosed Albatross – 1
Northern Giant Petrel – 1
Cape Gannet - 5
White-chinned Petrel – 30
Sooty Shearwater – 6
Cory’s Shearwater - 100
Wilson’s Storm Petrel – 4
Great-winged Petrel – 2
Subantarctic Skua – 5
Parasitic Jaeger – 6
Pomerine Jaeger – 1
Swift Tern – 50
Sandwich Tern - 4
Common Tern- 200
Sabine’s Gull – 6
Kelp Gull – 100
Hartlaub’s Gull – coastal
Bank Cormorant – 10
White-breasted Cormorant – 20
Cape Cormorant – numerous
A superb day in terms of the weather and good by way of variety but not quantity as is to be expected at this time of year. Thanks to Chris and Poenas for making the day a highly enjoyable and educational one embracing not only the pelagic birding highlights but all the other marine ‘safari’ sights on offer as well!
Patrick Cardwell 18/12/11
