For bird lovers, the Cape Gannet (Morus
capensis) colony at Bird Island, across the causeway from the harbour is a very
important reason to visit Lambert's Bay. It is well worth the charge of R50 per
head to visit the island, but be warned, they only accept cash. On our first
attempt at visiting the colony, we were turned back as we had insufficient cash
and they were not interested in our cards. There are nbo ATMs in the town, but
the Spar supermarket will allow you to draw cash with your card at the till
The causeway
A pair of cormorants was flirting in the harbour
A sculpture made of driftwood
at the entrance
and a fibreglass
representation of a Southern Right whale
The excellent hide at the
edge of the nesting area. A very good vantage point for photography. It is a two-level concrete structure, clad
with fibreglass "rock". The pattern and colour of the artificial rock
were carefully constructed to match the natural rock on the island, and the
hide is probably one of the most architecturally important bird hides in the
world. It provides extraordinarily good views of the Cape Gannet colony. From
the lower level, the gannets go about their daily business within a few metres
of a huge window of one-way glass. Upstairs is an open viewing platform which
provides an overview of the colony, and where the cacophony of calling gannets
is overwhelming. The gannets breed in spring and summer.
Bird Island Nature Reserve is
a 3-hectare CapeNature nature reserve in Lambert's Bay, South Africa. It is an
important breeding site for Cape gannets and crowned cormorants. Currently it
is home to between 4000 and 6000 breeding pairs. It is the only place at which
one has access to see the birds at close quarters and is the last place at
which a seabird breeding colony can be visited before the Namibian islands
600Km to the north
The other colonies are at
Mercury Island, Ichaboe Island and Possession Island in Namibia, and in South
Africa at Malgas Island and at the other Bird Island, Mandela Bay, which is
near Port Elizabeth in the Eastern Cape. There has not always been a gannet
colony in Lambert's Bay. This colony is believed to have formed in 1912. The
process whereby new Cape Gannet colonies form is unknown, because young gannets
are incredibly faithful at returning to their natal islands when they mature
and start breeding, and movements between colonies are exceptional
The birds crowd together and
one is amazed at seeing them return to their own nests when they return from
fishing
The noise is extreme, but they seem to recognise their mates' calls
From this point I'll keep comments to a minimum. The birds speak for themselves
Maybe a bit self-indulgent, but this a very small selection of the photographs I took
A courting couple in a mating
dance
Clear off! She's mine!
Young birds are covered in
guano which is washed off when they dive into the sea
First flights of fledglings.
They'll be a lot cleaner when they return
Perfection in the air
Cape fur seals also breed on
the island. They prey on sea birds as well as fish, so are a threat to the bird
life, especially cormorants, penguins and gannets
A kelp gull pair. They also
breed on the island, but away from the gannets
Profuse thanks to the Animal
Demography Unit at the University of Cape Town, from whom I borrowed some of
the text http://www.adu.uct.ac.za/adu/projects/sea-shore-birds/sites/sa/lamberts-bay
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© John & Lynne Ford, Adamastor & Bacchus 2019
