Hello there Radio Marinara listeners - this page follows my fascinating voyage of discovery into land based marine research that takes place at Bird Island. I work for the British Antarctic Survey (B.A.S.) as one of their field researchers, and thanks to the generous opportunity of the Radio Marinara presenters I will be able to share my science experiences with you for the next two-and-a-half years! Before I get ahead of myself I'd better explain who B.A.S. are, and a little about Bird Island.

Get the latest update

Isaac Forster
Biological Sciences Division
British Antarctic Survey
High Cross, Madingley Rd.
Cambridge, CB3 0ET
United Kingdom

Bird Island is one of five research stations that the B.A.S. currently operates. B.A.S. is most widely known for their work into atmospheric chemistry and physics, their most famous scientific achievement being the discovery of the Ozone hole. However B.A.S. also runs an extensive biological sciences program based around South Georgia and the South Shetland Islands. B.A.S. is a public company that falls under the umbrella of the Natural Environment Resource Council, the British equivalent of our Department of Sustainability and Environment

Bird Island lies just off the Northwest tip of South Georgia, latitude 54° south.

Location relative to South America

The island itself is approximately five kilometres long and one kilometre at its widest, it is decorated with rugged peaks, steep rocky cliffs and stony beaches. Year round temperatures range from -10°C in winter to +10°C in summer, flora is almost entirely tussac grass with small scatterings of moss.

The research station is located in Jordan Cove, literally in the middle of an Antarctic Fur Seal colony and has accommodation for ten scientists over summer. During winter only four dedicated staff remain to complete the long term monitoring and keep the research facility running.

So why do scientists jump at the opportunity to stay in such a remote place for two and a half years? Bird Island is afforded special protection as a Site of Special Scientific Interest. It is home to approximately 50,000 breeding pairs of penguins, 30,000 pairs of albatross, 700,000 nocturnal petrels and 65,000 breeding fur seals. Combining all of these furry and feathered critters it means that there is one bird or seal for every 1.5m2 of the island!

Not surprisingly this is one of the richest sites for wildlife anywhere in the world. Here are just a few of the inhabitants.

Wandering Albatross along with Macaroni Penguins and Antarctic Fur-seals

Research on Bird Island centres on land based marine predators. Current studies are exploring seabird and seal population dynamics, feeding ecology and reproductive performance. Much work undertaken at Bird Island also involves long term monitoring of species, which contributes to international environmental and conservation objectives. Severe declines have been seen in many marine bird populations, attributable to mortality thorough long line fishing entanglements.

Bird Island is home to many affected birds including the majestic Wandering Albatross, currently an endangered species, with 1,000 breeding pairs on the island.

Science from Bird Island will provide an invaluable tool in the preservation of endangered Antarctic Wildlife.

Female Wanderer & Chick

My research period began on the 23rd of October, in the months following that I aim to give you a greater insight into base life, remote marine scientific research, and the wonders of Antarctic wildlife.

This brief introduction to Bird Island has only scratched the surface of the science programs and research stations that B.A.S. support. For more information I highly recommend visiting the B.A.S. website. There you will fine a vast array of information on the Antarctic continent. You can follow the links to the Bird Island site from there. Don't forget to check out the Bird Island diary for fun newsletters over the years from current and previous scientists.

Elephant seal and base in winter.

Summer is a time of frenzied breeding activity island wide. Elephant seals and Antarctic fur-seals fill the beaches, Macaroni and Gentoo penguin colonies fill to overflowing, and scores of Albatross, Petrels and Prions nest island wide. Summer is also the busy season for scientists as we frantically race to gather our study data before winter fast approaches.

With so much activity on the island the experiences are a daily procession of amazing sights. Let me introduce you to a small selection of our favourite animals on the island and briefly describe the sights, sounds and smells that we are privileged to enjoy every day.

The Summer Seals

These big guys are one of the best known of all seals with the huge proboscis sporting males featuring in many documentaries and photograph collections. The elephant seals belong to the family Phocidea (earless seals). Seals in this family are characterised by having dark skin, furry flippers, and hind flippers that cannot be turned forward. The family name suggests that ears are absent, which is not the case. Rather external structures are lacking giving rise to the tag of 'earless'.
Their distribution is circumpolar, with most sub-Antarctic islands having populations. Occasionally individuals are found as far north as Tasmania and southern New Zealand with a few records from coastal Victoria. In 1799 a large breeding population existed on King Island but it rapidly succumbed to the sealing fever of those times.

Elephant seals being to come ashore in September with the bulls staking out territories, waiting for the females who join them a few weeks later. The males are huge, the largest up to 4-5 metres in length and 3.5 tonnes in weight, and as Chris, our resident penguin biologist demonstrates, dwarf us puny humans. For the record Chris is about 186 cm in height.

Females are a slim 350-800 kg by comparison. Males gather together the cows to form harems, which can be up to 100 individuals. Bird Island has a small population, our largest harem this year was twelve females presided over by one very smug male!

The days of late September and early October are characterised the males roaring to proclaim their dominance, although roaring is a pleasant term for the sounds produced. Think of the world's loudest bout of flatulence and you'd be pretty close to the mark! Occasionally a challenger attempts to overthrow the 'beachmaster' and a titanic battle ensues. For all their vast bulk the males are remarkable agile. They rear up to 3.5 metres high, pitch their whole upper torsos forward and slash down with their tusks in a massive sledgehammer style movement. Battles can last up to 10 minutes if size is evenly matched, making a lovely spectacle of brute force for breakfast time viewing out the station windows! Serious wounds are rare, but males can inflict large gashes on the throat and rip their opponents nose.

The pups are born about a week after the cows haul out and appear like oversized prunes, bags of loose, dark, furry skin. The reason for such a large an oversized covering becomes rapidly apparent. Pups suckle for 2-3 weeks and can gain up to 9kg a day. Females are not feeding for this period and can loose an astonishing 300kg in weight. By weaning time the pups are often appear as large as their mothers! After the females return to sea the males soon follow suit, leaving the cigar shaped juveniles to moult and make their first seaward journey.

Antarctic Fur-seals are extremely similar to the well known Australian Fur-seals seen at Seal Rocks on Phillip Island. Their main difference is that they are relatively smaller in size compared to their Australian cousins. Both seals belong to the family Otariidae (eared seals) and are characterised by having a light coloured skin, hind flippers that can be turned forward, and small external ear structures. Their distribution is also circumpolar, however they are mostly found south of the Antarctic convergence unlike Southern Elephant seals. Bird Island has an extensive population, our research station literally sits in the middle of a breeding beach!

Sexual dimorphism (unequal size), like the Southern Elephant seal is present in fur seals. Males have to be large and powerful to hold territories, the biggest males on Bird Island weigh in at 200kg, females range from 35 to 70kg. They also form harems of females 5-20 individuals in size.

Aggressive interactions are common on the territorial boundaries, males can sprint over a short distance as fast as humans and strike with incredible speed and force. Serious injuries are inflicted from the large canines. Split flippers, mangled noses and deep wounds to the body are frequent. Many males die from septicaemia and exhaustion as they fast for up to 60 days during peak breeding.

Females come ashore from mid-November to mid -December to pup, the peak birthing period being around the 7th-10th of December. The scene during this period is spectacular, beaches are carpeted with sleek bodies, males continuously roar challenges to their neighbours, whilst trying to maintain their own harem, females wail to their pups and the pups bleat plaintively for their mothers. This incredible animal chorus echoes all over the little island, even at the top of the highest peak (La Roche, 356m) the symphony can be heard, like a far off football crowd cheering for a goal. Inside the station the football crowd is much more raucous as it all takes place directly beneath the floorboards!

Mothers return to sea seven to ten days after the little pups are born for feeding bouts of approximately five days. The cycle is repeated until late March/ early April, although foraging length increases as the pups become more independent. The pups finally take to the sea in groups to avoid their main predator, the Leopard Seal (Hydrurga leptonyx).

The Breeding Penguins

The Gentoo Penguin is the largest of the breeding penguins on Bird Island, standing 75 cm tall and weighing around 5.7kg. They are undoubtedly one of the most entertaining of our animals. The males conduct a wonderful ritual of displaying stones to prospective females. If she accepts his bequest a crowing duet results, both birds throwing their heads back in an ecstatic display. If his offer is rejected the male ambles good-naturedly onto the next candidate, gift at the ready.
Stones are important, not only in the displaying phase of the life cycle, but in the nesting stage as well. Gentoo nests are mounded collections of pebbles lined with a few strands of tussock grass. As appropriate stones are often scarce in size, 'borrowing' is a common habit. Inevitably the borrower has his own collection raided whilst he absent. Females take the role of domestic organiser, arranging the materials the male collects.

Gentoos lay two eggs, and in abundant food years the parents can successfully raise both chicks. In poor years often one or occasionally both chicks starve before they fledge. Food for the Gentoos, is mostly Krill (Euphrausia superba), supplemented with fish, other crustaceans and amphipods.
After the chicks hatch parent alternate guarding for about three weeks, protecting their offspring from the rapacious Brown Skuas and Giant Petrels, which are continuously patrolling for an easy meal. As the chicks grow so does their appetite and after the first three weeks both parents scour the ocean, returning every 2-3 days with a (hopefully!) full stomach. During this period the chicks form large crèches where all the offspring in the colony gather together to avoid the aerial predators. Fledging of offspring can take between 80-100 days from time of hatching.

Gentoo Penguins are found breeding on the Antarctic Peninsula, the sub-Antarctic Islands and the Falkland Islands. The largest breeding colony on Bird Island has 1000 pairs. Vagrant visitors have been recorded on Tasmania and the South island of New Zealand.

The most numerous of the Penguins on Bird Island, totalling 60,000 breeding pairs, 'Macs' make up for their small stature (around 5kg) with an aggressive attitude. Standing slightly shorter than the Gentoos at 70cm, one word describes them perfectly, ANGRY!

The largest of the Macaroni colonies on the island, 'Big Mac' has an overwhelming 40,000 breeding pairs crammed together on a rocky hillside facing a small inlet from the ocean. Each pair vigorously guard a small territory around their nest, intruders are swiftly ejected with hard pecks and repeated flipper strikes.
In the midst of this cacophony on honking penguins and screaming skuas, a broad bare path runs from the top of the colony to the ocean, seeming an unspoken truce existing from all colony members to keep this 'motorway' clear, allowing easy access to the sea. However, once off the safe motorway each bird must run the gauntlet of a barrage of pecks on the way to its nest. The provides a rather comical scene, the frantically hurrying individual tucks its flippers close to the body to avoid providing a beak-hold!

Like the Gentoos, Macs lay two eggs. However the A egg is always considerably smaller than the B egg, and is incubated very tentatively. Even if the A egg survives the depredations of the skuas and sheathbills it almost never hatches, only the B egg, which is incubated very carefully, reliably produces chicks.
No clear purpose of the A egg occurrence has ever been documented. The most widely accepted theory is that Macs once had two viable eggs, like the Gentoos, but are currently at an evolutionary midpoint, on their way to eventually laying just the one egg.

Incubation is approximately 35 days long and the pair cleverly organise their shifts at the nest so that the female returns from a fishing expedition as the chick is about to hatch. After hatching the chicks progress through the stages of guarding, crèche and moulting before fledging at about 2 months of age.

The Flying Birds

Undoubtedly one of the most iconic Antarctic species, The Wandering Albatross has the largest wingspan of any flying bird, up to 3.5 metres, and can weight as much as 12kg. Their adult life is mostly spent riding the winds of the 'roaring forties' and 'furious fifties' circumnavigating the Southern Ocean in search of food. However birds do range as far north as 17°S off the Western Coast of Africa, and are regularly seen in Australian coastal waters as far north as N.S.W.

Life is tied to the ocean to take advantage of the constant winds over wave surfaces providing uplift. Master gliders on stiffly outstretched wings they are usually seen performing slow figure of eight paths around ship wakes. On calm days they become stranded, they are too big to fly unaided.

Bird Island is a stronghold for Wanderers with 1000 pairs breeding every season. This represents approximately two thirds of the entire South Georgia population. Visitors to our little island are always keen to see the big white birds serenely perched on their dome like nests, patiently waiting for their partner to return from foraging. Wanderers favour windswept terrain with long, relatively clean slopes for take-off and landing. The majesty of their flight is often replaced by a controlled crash on return to earth! Similarly it is quite an undertaking for a Wanderer to get airborne and a long runway helps.

Like many species of Albatross breeding only takes place in alternate years. Adults do not reach sexual maturity until they are 7-12 years old, but may live longer than 50 years. Egg laying begins in early December to January on a large mud and grass mound nest, incubation taking up to 80 days. Chicks are then fed for nine months, fledging around November to December the following year. Thus successful adults do not have the opportunity to lay again the following year and miss a season. If a pair fails whilst on an egg they may attempt to breed the following year. Once a pair of adults is established they often bond for life.

Unfortunately Wandering Albatross numbers are in serious decline worldwide and Bird Island is no exception. Numbers have been reduced by about 30% since the 1970's and currently the decline is around 2-3% of the breeding population each year. The cause of mortality has been pinpointed to long-line fishing vessels, Wanderers being enthusiastic followers of ships in the hope of scavenging discards. This practice exposes them to baited hooks off trawlers and every year substantial numbers of Albatross, as well as other seabirds such as Giant Petrels, and White Chinned Petrels, are entangled in hooks and lines.

This is a difficult problem to address as the vast fishing grounds of the Southern Ocean are almost impossible to police. Pirate vessels plunder depleted fishing stocks as well as snagging thousands of seabirds, no regulations being applicable to these unscrupulous individuals.

Thankfully progress is being made with the recent ratification of the A.C.A.P. (Agreement on the Conservation of Albatrosses and Petrels) treaty by five southern hemisphere nations. Hopefully by-catch rates can be seriously reduced by the presence of fisheries patrol officers aboard trawlers and long-liners.

South Georgian Shag, Phalacrocorax [atriceps] georgianus
Shags and cormorants both belong to the family Phalacrocoracidae, which has successfully colonized the coastal regions of the world. They are commonly seen on Australian coasts with several species widespread and abundant.
The South Georgian shag has a striking appearance an iridescent blue/black covering and a white throat and torso. The orbital rings are a brilliant cobalt blue and the nasal caruncles (knobs) are a bright orange.

Adapted perfectly for the Antarctic environment with extra dense inner plumage, shags can dive to an amazing 100m where they pursue fish and small crustaceans. This is deeper than most of the penguins. They are also excellent flyers so in my book shags are one dammed impressive bird!

South Georgian shags are restricted to South Georgia, the South Orkney and South Sandwich Islands. Several other sub-species can be found throughout sub-Antarctic waters, on the Antarctic peninsula and around the southern tip of South America.

On Bird Island the shags nest colonially on steep sea cliffs, colonies being around 30 pairs in size. The largest colonies further on the South Orkney's can be around 1000 breeding pairs. Nests are a bulky cone of seaweed, feathers and other detritus including mummified corpses of chicks, all cemented together with excrement. Not surprisingly colonies are often smelt before they are seen!
2-3 eggs greyish blue eggs are laid in November to December with incubation around 30 days in length. The chicks hatch naked so the parents brood for another two weeks until down develops. As this stage the nest resembles a medusa like creature as the three young heads weave sinuously around each other uttering squawks and hisses

.
As they grow older chicks venture away from their nest, wandering around the colony. Fledging takes approximately 65 days.

As the summer winds to a close on Bird Island many other species are participating in competition that is breeding and survival in the Antarctic. In the next instalment we will examine some more of the unique wildlife present and begin to delve into the global science programs conducted at the research station.

Isaac Forster
Bird Island Research Station
British Antarctic Survey, Stanley, Falkland Islands
South Atlantic, FIQQ 1ZZ
www.antarctic.ac.uk