The Island of Malgas

[elsa hoffmann]

I was privileged to be invited to join the Pelican Watch on Malgas Island earlier this month.

25% of the world’s Cape Gannet population is found on Malgas Island, just off Langebaan in the Western Cape. Malgas Island is home to approximately 20 000 breeding pairs of Gannets. Besides Gannets - Cape Cormorants (thousands of them), Penguins, Oyster Catchers, Kelp Gulls, White Breasted Cormorants, Seals, Crowned Cormorants (endangered), Sacred Ibis and the common Tern can be found on the Island. The Penguins are quite vulnerable, as they are molting, and can not go to water during this time.

Pelicans only visit to raid the nests. It was our job to look out for Pelicans, and discourage them from landing on the island. If the Pelicans are left to feed on the island, practically no babies will survive. Predations were plentiful – the Seals feed on the Cape Cormorants –picking them off - sometimes a predation every 2 minutes.

The island is uninhabited, but there is a fairly big house, which is about 80 years old. Guano collectors probably stayed on the island some years ago. There is no fresh water, so rainwater is collected for bathing and dishes, drinking water brought from the land by boat. No electricity – but a good solar panel system.

There is nothing else to do on the island besides watching out for Pelicans and taking photos. All in all there is about 140 000 Gannets on the island. I think I photographed every single one of them.

Here is a link to a video – about 2 minutes long I think – so show what I looked at all day long.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5KB09OXYTro&feature=youtu.be

[elsa hoffmann]

a couple more

[tommiejeep]

Well Elsa, it sure ain't Svalbard  .  Great series.  Some are just too much fun.  Number 5 has some halos I'd get rid of .  Number 7 and the penultimate are so cool . I just expect to hear a voice coming out of number 7, ala a Disney film  .  Some of the others are much more artistic and better images but I do like some fun  .
The image of the buildings is excellent.
Thanks for sharing these,
Tom

[Tristin]

Wow, Elsa, what a great opportunity!  #7 is indeed phenomenal, what lens did you use if you don't mind me asking?

Also, I am quite curious.  Why the human intervention in the animal predation?  For human predation or for invasive species predation I can certainly understand.  Prohibition of natural predation seems quite destructive to me.

[Mike G]

Superb stuff Elsa!

[afx]

Lovely!
So how long did you stay?

cheers
afx

[John Geerts]

Super. Very impressive and great series.  I love their eyes with the blue Mascara   

[Fons Baerken]

Like the others have said, Elsa
did you wear some ear protection?

[Bruno Schroder]

Wow, great pictures, Elsa. Can you tell more about the project? Intervention against predation is rather unusual, except to protect a strongly endangered species.

[elsa hoffmann]

Thank you for the kind comments.
Tommie - thank you - I didnt even see the halo
Tristan - 14-24 at 18mm - i just held the camera below the gannets - not looking thru the view finder.
AFX - I stayed for 5 days - that's how often the boat comes to the island for your ride in/out.
Fons - the sound isn't bad at all. I actually miss it now.

Re the reason for the Pelican Watch:
for many years - a local chicken farm used to throw out their left over bits - and the Pelicans feasted on this. With the result that they just about stopped
fishing. Pelican numbers increased dramatically - until the government cottoned on and forced the chicken farm to dispose of their bits in another way.
Now the Pelicans are too lazy to fish - they started wiping out the Gannet and Cape Cormorant colonies. The damage was extensive.
One particular year - the island was divided and Pelicans chased only from one side. 2 chicks survived - because their parents were breeding just about under a rock. Extensive research is done, and birds, eggs and fatalities are counted 2 x every day during breeding season. So they know exactly what is happening.
The Pelicans are encouraged to fish - but they will inevitably still take babies/eggs - but the impact will be far less. The gannets will not survive if the Pelicans are not chased away. Another colony in Namibia is in a very poor state as no measures were taken to protect the gannet colony.

[Bruno Schroder]

Very needed project indeed. How do you prevent pelicans from landing? I see the islands is rather small but nevertheless, it does mean quite a group of volunteers to cover the surface of the colony and the whole nesting season. A long term project too, I guess, till the pelicans forget ...

[Akira]

Welcome back, Elsa!

The very first one and the first one of the added three stand out to me.  Both are truly impressive.  Thanks for sharing!

[HiltonP]

Just to add to Elsa's explanation..... as mankind's footprint expands, his influence on the ecosystem becomes more pronounced.

I live about 20 km from Elsa and have noticed a huge change in birdlife in our region during the last 30 to 40 years. Back in the 1970s we had a more natural range of avian predators which included individual birds such as buzzards, kites & kestrels. These have virtually disappeared now with their habitats having been bulldozed for housing and industry.

They have now been "replaced" by increasing numbers of crows, ibis (sacred & hadeda) and Egyptian geese. Being more generalists in their eating habits they have flourished, with a resultant detrimental effect on all of the smaller animals such as tortoises, lizards, insects, small birds, and any young birds.

This has a knock-on effect in terms of the indigenous mammals found in the area, etc, etc. Unfortunately we have to accept that if we are going to influence a natural ecosystem through our presence, then we need to manage the effects as well, and this is what the Pelican Watch program (and similar programs) is trying to do.

[Anthony]

Thanks, Elsa, great photos of gannets (among my favourite birds) and a very interesting story.  Initially I was concerned that the Pelican Watch might have been interfering with nature, but it is clear that it is in fact trying to undo the effects of human activity, in the same way that some remote islands are getting rid of human introduced species which are destroying the natives.

It must have been a great experience.

[Mike G]

Elsa, just to go off topic slightly, I really hope your health has improved and maybe not threatened by a HA!

I too now have a serious condition(Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma) which is undergoing treatment as we speak, hey ho, but mine is curable I'm told!

God bless and good health

Regards

Mike