CARCASS ISLAND a Beautiful Rodent-Free Island with Exceptional Bird Life
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CARCASS ISLAND A beautiful rodent-free island with exceptional bird life www.falklandsconservation.com CARCASS ISLAND THE FALKLAND ISLANDS The Falkland Islands archipelago lies GRAND JASON 350 km (280 miles) to the east of the South STEEPLE JASON N FLAT JASON SEDGE ISLAND JASON ISLANDS ELEPHANT JASON Cape Dolphin American continent. It consists of two large SOUTH JASON PEBBLE ISLAND SAUNDERS KEPPEL Swan ISLAND CARCASS ISLAND Pond ISLAND Macbride Head DUNBAR Foul Bay Limpet Ronda ISLAND Creek islands, East and West Falkland, and more WEST Salvador Rincon Seal Port Bay POINT Purvis Douglas Grande Johnsons Byron Shallow Bay Port San Carlos Station Harbour ISLAND Dunbar Sound Horseshoe Volunteer Point MT CAROLINE Chata WEST Hill Cove Ajax Bay Port Louis SPLIT ISLAND Bay Creek Eagle Point than 750 small islands and islets. Roy Cove Many Branch MT ADAM Berkeley Sound FALKLAND San Carlos Teal Inlet Brookfield Long island KIDNEY ISLAND King Crooked Inlet 2297 D PASSAGE George Port N Port William ISLANDS UGrantham Bay Howard O Sound MT USBORNE S STANLEY Cape Pembroke NEW Chartres 2312 Shag D WICKHAM ISLAND N HEIGHTS Dunnose Cove A Mt Pleasant L Bluff Cove Head K Darwin Airport L A Fitzroy SWAN F Goose Green Queen ISLANDS EAST BEAVER Charlotte Spring Lake A Bertha’s ISLAND Bay Point I Mare Harbour Sulivan C Beach N hoiseul Sound FALKLAND Port Fox Bay Fox Bay O Lake West East Walker Richards Double F Creek WEDDELL Hammond GREAT ISLAND Creek ISLAND A LIVELY ISLAND Smiley Channel South RUGGLES L Harbour ISLAND Port Edgar North Arm ELEPHANT CAYS Port Stephens MOTLEY ISLAND TRISTE Hoste Inlet ISLAND BIRD ISLAND Port Albermarle SPEEDWELL 52°S 1500 ISLAND BLEAKER ISLAND ARCH ISLANDS Cape Meredith 1000 GEORGE ISLAND Bull Point Porpoise Point 500 BARREN ISLAND SEA LION EASTERLY Miles 0 010203040 SEA LION ISLAND Heights in feet 01020 30 40 50 60 above sea level Kms 61°W 60°W 59°W 58°W Carcass Island lies to the north-westBEAUCHÊNE ISLAND of the Falkland Islands archipelago, 6·5 km (4 miles) off Hope Point, the nearest land on West Falkland. Carcass Island is reached by an hour's flight from Stanley or Mount Pleasant Complex with the Falkland Islands Government Air Service (FIGAS), or by Zodiac beach landings from visiting cruise ships. The Twins, two island nature reserves owned by Falklands Conservation, lie off the north-west tip Contact of Carcass Island. They support a population of Tel: +500 41106 southern sea lions and southern elephant seals. Email: [email protected] Upland goose COVER PHOTO: Magellnic penguins About Carcass Island Carcass Island is about 10 km (6¼ miles) long, and then on their own. They continued to farm with a maximum width of 2·5 km (1½ miles) the land whilst protecting its wildlife. and covers 1,894 ha (4,680 acres). It takes Rob and Lorraine McGill have owned the its name from HMS Carcass which visited in the island since 1974. The Island is self-sufficient in late 18th century. organic vegetables, meat and dairy produce. There are large sand bays, a tidal rock point Although Carcass still supports sheep, tourism to the north-west and cliffs and slopes along is now the main focus. the north-eastern coast. There are several One hundred and seven different plants have freshwater ponds which are important for been identified including the uncommon wildfowl. yellow orchid, the rare endemic hairy daisy The highest point is Mount Byng (213 m, 700 ft). and whitlowgrass. It has been a sheep farm for more than a There are no cats, rats or mice here to predate century but careful management has retained a on ground-nesting birds, which thrive here in place rich in wildlife with songbirds, penguins, abundance. Carcass Island is notable as an and a diverse plant life that includes areas of important site for the endemic Cobb’s wren. mature tussac grass. There are several colonies of gentoo penguins, Charles Hansen, a Dane, was the first farmer a good number of the rare striated caracara to lease the land, setting up a sheep farm in and considerable numbers of ruddy-headed 1872, building the settlement and fencing off geese. livestock areas. Large areas were planted It qualifies as an Important Bird Area (part with tussac for use as winter animal feed. of FK17), a global standard set by BirdLife He passed the farm to his son Jason Hansen, International. and then ownership passed to Cecil and Kitty Bertrand, originally in partnership with others x x LAMBING SEASON Please follow the guidelines x CARCASS N CARCASS ISLAND x SETTLEMENT The lambing season is from October to x December. During this time visitors are asked to MAINTAIN A DISTANCE of >6 m take extra care not to disturb ewes as they may 6 m (20 ft) between you and Cobb’s wren N North West Point x abandon lambs if startled. any wildlife at all times. Striated caracara x WILDLIFE HAVE RIGHT OF WAY Jetty AT ALL TIMES. Do not block wildlife from returning or entering the sea. no smoking Magellanic TAKE CARE on steep slopes and Commerson's penguins Dolphins slippery rocks. LEAVE GATES as you find them. Dyke Shedder alley Pond no fires V Elephant BE AWARE of biosecurity. PORT PATTISON Flat x Do not introduce invasive species Gentoo Jason Hill to the area. penguins 500 North Bluff x The Plain WARNING Beechams Magellanic penguin BE CAREFUL not to trample the WARNING do not litter Island Please avoid burrows – mind burrows of nesting seabirds, your step The Ovens Hill gentoo 'highway' particularly those of Magellanic Dyke Bay x x penguins. Avoid walking across x Cave Point x areas of high burrow density. x Hawks 500 Nest no flash Mt Byng x Magellanic Valley 400 penguins Rock x R Mt Byng South Gothic o x c 300 shag 228 k The Saddle Gentoo Point y c x R 723 as h penguins F in y id e Valle 200 Ram g Padck.Hill e Leopard x 100 Beach 0 Height in feet above sea level Commerson's Carcass dolphins Settlement Ballast Stanley Visitor hike – 4km (2½ miles) Needles South Hill American Beach East End 0 0·5 1 1.5 Point Hill Km terns NEEDLES ROCKS Miles Jetty 0 0·5 1 800 PO Dykealley Jason KEY R x V T x PA Hill Steep cliffs Wire fence 600 T D T y I k 500 S e O 400 P Gate N a Beechams d d Rocky 200 Island Dyke o c ck foreshore Restricted area Bay k do Carcass Reef ad 0 t. Gothic Height in feet P Tussac Hiking route ic Point above sea level th grass o Leopard G Beach Unsurfaced Kilometres Kelp beds track 0 0·5 1 2 3 Airstrip See enlargement Wildlife Cruise ship 0 0·5 1 2 for more detail viewing area Needles Point anchorage Miles Falkland Songbirds Carcass Island abounds with native Falkland songbirds. Tussacbird, dark-faced ground tyrant, correndera pipit, sedge wren, austral thrush and long-tailed meadowlark are all widespread and numerous. It is also home to Cobb’s wren, one of two endemic birds found in the Falkland Islands. Tussac grass, along with trees Long-tailed meadowlark and shrubs planted around the settlement, provides shelter from the strong winds, a range of nest sites, abundant nest material and a plentiful source of insects for food. There are no mammal predators here so ground-nesting birds can thrive, particularly in the absence of rats and mice. Cobb’s wren was first described 100 years ago from a specimen found on Carcass Island. It was named after Arthur Cobb, a local farmer and amateur ornithologist. This is a small brown bird with a long bill. It is uniformly dark chestnut-brown above with paler buff under parts, a grey-brown head, with Black-chinned siskin wings and tail, which are barred dark and light brown. The tail is often held erect. Adults fade to dull brown above in summer. Newly fledged juveniles have a dark head and bright chestnut back. Cobb’s wrens can be found on boulder-strewn beaches with lots of accumulated dead seaweed where they feed on insects and sea lice. It also takes camel crickets in the tussac grass and feeds crickets and moth caterpillars to its nestlings. It is very tame and rather than flying away, the bird will often slip under a boulder or into tussac. They live for about six years and are thought to remain in their breeding territories all year round. Falkland thrush Cobb's wren Carcass Island songbirds: All nine species of Falklands breeding passerines can be seen on Carcass Island Cobb’s wren Tussacbird White-bridled finch Dark-faced ground-tyrant Correndera pipit Sedge wren Austral thrush Long-tailed meadowlark Black-chinned siskin Magellanic Penguins Carcass Island has a large number of Magellanic penguins, found all over the island. They are often referred to locally as jackass penguins because of their mournful braying call, a typical sound of the Falkland summer, which continues through much of the night. Magellanic penguins are found all around the coast of southern South America and are listed as Near Threatened by BirdLife International. The estimated population of breeding pairs in the Falkland Islands is 140,000 pairs. Magellanic penguins come to the Falkland Islands to breed. They begin to arrive in springtime (early September). Nests are made in underground burrows up to 2 m (6 ft) deep under a tussac grass pedestal or in more open peaty ground. Birds usually return to the same burrow in the same colony each year, but ownership of nest sites is sometimes contested.