Report on a pelagic boat trip from Eaglehawk Neck (Tasmania), 17/10/98
Those present: Bill and Maggie Wakefield, Tim Reid and others (I have an
appalling memory for this kind of thing).
Weather: Fine and cloudy all day (6/8 cloud). Wind F4 from NE in am,
increasing to F5-7 from the NW in the afternoon. Seas 2m.
Activities: Departed Eaglehawk Neck 0715. Arrived Hippolyte Rock 0800. At
the shlf break 0840. Headed out to deeper water, and then north along shelf
edge until 1315. Found there to be very few birds (other than short-tailed
shearwaters) along the shelf edge to the north. Docked 1515.
Water temperature ranged from 10.6 - 11.5oC.
Birds seen (estimated number, with maximum count in brackets):
Wandering Albatross 2(1); 2 stage 4
Southern Royal Albatross 1(1); 1 stage 1
Northern Royal Albatross 1(1); 1 stage 1
Shy Albatross 150(25)
Black-browed Albatross 1(1); 1 juvenile
Northern Giant-petrel 1(1); 1 stage 1
Southern Giant-petrel 1(1); stage 1
Cape Petrel 5(4); 5 capense
Great-winged Petrel 3(1); 3 macroptera
Antarctic/Salvin's Prion 10(5)
Fairy Prion 200(100)
Short-tailed Shearwater sky blackening numbers (tens of '000's)
Sooty Shearwater 10(5)
Common Diving-petrel 2(1)
Wilson's Storm-petrel 11(11)
White-faced Storm-petrel 2(2)
Grey-backed Storm-petrel 2(4)
Australian Gannet 15(10)
Great Skua 1(1)
Arctic Jaeger 1(1); dark phase
White-fronted Tern 1(1); first winter
Dominican Gull
Silver Gull 10(3)
Black-faced Shag 50(10); plus 400 pairs on Hippolyte Rock
Birds on Hippolyte Rock or the Sisters
Dominican Gull
Pacific Gul
Silver Gull
Crested Tern
Pied Oystercatcher
Sooty Oystercatcher
White-faced Heron
Tree Martin
Yellow-throated Honeyeater
Mammals seen
Australian Fur-seal
lots of long-finned pilot whales sitting on beaches nearby
===========================================
Tim Reid.
Marine Ecosystems Unit
Tasmanian Parks and Wildlife Service
PO Box 44a
Hobart
Tasmania
Australia
phone: 011-61-3-62336018
fax: 011-61-3-62333477
e-mail:
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