At Sea
Transitions. On a unique voyage like this, covering thousands of miles, we become experienced at making transitions, but never blasé. Each one seems to be more exciting than the last. Yesterday we saw our first albatross, a clear indication that we are near the edge of the vast southern ocean.
Suddenly we are there. This morning’s dawn erupted in birdlife. Giant petrels, Greater shearwaters, Wilson’s storm-petrels, Yellow-nosed albatross, and Wandering albatross all swarmed around the ship. Sometimes they fly so close that every feather, every subtle line on a bill, can be clearly distinguished without binoculars. This aerial ballet is so compelling that today, everyone on board becomes a birdwatcher.
The largest, most awe-inspiring of these creatures is the Wandering albatross, pictured here. With a wingspan of over 11 feet and a weight of up to 26 pounds, Wanderers are nearly 300 times the size of their diminutive cousins, the Wilson’s storm-petrel. Breeding on remote southern ocean islands and often circling the globe in search of food, we can expect to see Wanderers every day for the rest of the voyage. Although they nest on some of the outlying islands, on Tristan da Cunha itself the last Wandering albatross was killed in 1907 – the immense chicks slowly growing in their nests for 9 months were a favorite wedding banquet meal. Fortunately, in recent years the islanders have developed a strong conservation ethic, and traditional exploitation of seabirds has been curtailed. Yet even though we are now only a few hundred miles from the Tristan group of islands, there is no way of knowing where these albatross are from. They truly are ocean wanderers, capable of covering hundreds of miles per day. Perhaps some of these birds around our ship are from South Georgia, where with luck we may see them nesting!
Transitions. On a unique voyage like this, covering thousands of miles, we become experienced at making transitions, but never blasé. Each one seems to be more exciting than the last. Yesterday we saw our first albatross, a clear indication that we are near the edge of the vast southern ocean.
Suddenly we are there. This morning’s dawn erupted in birdlife. Giant petrels, Greater shearwaters, Wilson’s storm-petrels, Yellow-nosed albatross, and Wandering albatross all swarmed around the ship. Sometimes they fly so close that every feather, every subtle line on a bill, can be clearly distinguished without binoculars. This aerial ballet is so compelling that today, everyone on board becomes a birdwatcher.
The largest, most awe-inspiring of these creatures is the Wandering albatross, pictured here. With a wingspan of over 11 feet and a weight of up to 26 pounds, Wanderers are nearly 300 times the size of their diminutive cousins, the Wilson’s storm-petrel. Breeding on remote southern ocean islands and often circling the globe in search of food, we can expect to see Wanderers every day for the rest of the voyage. Although they nest on some of the outlying islands, on Tristan da Cunha itself the last Wandering albatross was killed in 1907 – the immense chicks slowly growing in their nests for 9 months were a favorite wedding banquet meal. Fortunately, in recent years the islanders have developed a strong conservation ethic, and traditional exploitation of seabirds has been curtailed. Yet even though we are now only a few hundred miles from the Tristan group of islands, there is no way of knowing where these albatross are from. They truly are ocean wanderers, capable of covering hundreds of miles per day. Perhaps some of these birds around our ship are from South Georgia, where with luck we may see them nesting!
