PORT FAIRY
(PF), VIC, PELAGIC TRIP REPORT, 10 NOVEMBER 2002
OBSERVERS: Chris Lester (organiser), Rob
Berry, Peter Crabtree, Gail D’alton, Tim Dolby, Julie Hennessey, Tania Ireton,
Frank Pierce, David Stickney, Chris Tzaros, Geoff Walker, Andrew Wells &
Mike Carter (leader).
WEATHER: High-pressure system ridging in
from the west. Occasional cloudy periods but mostly sunny with excellent, sharp,
visibility. Cold. Wind up to 12 knots from the SW early but easing and backing
to SE by 10.00.
SEA:
Moderate (2-3 m sea), on a medium (2-4 m) SW swell early made it a rough, bumpy,
ride out with plenty of spray. Sea moderating to a slop of about a metre by
mid-day. In spite of that, no one was sick but some got very wet and others
got sore with the buffeting. The trip back with a following sea was
benign.
ACTIVITY: Sailed at 06.15. Headed out on a
COG of 205º at 12.0 Kts. Very few birds inshore and offshore until just inside
the shelf break when we saw a WHITE-HEADED PETREL, a species that entertained us
all day. We stopped and berleyed here, from 08.45 to 09.30. This also attracted
a WHITE-CHINNED PETREL. Then continued out into the pelagic zone where we had
three stops over depths of up to 250 fathoms at a distance of up to 70 km from
Port Fairy centred on 38º49’S 141º52’E. Our shark-liver and chopped fish berley
quickly attracted birds to the boat. Best bird here was one of two ARCTIC TERNS.
This hovered at ‘touching’ distance at the back of the boat suggesting it had
been sponsored by Kodak. We were speeding in from the shelf break, which we
departed at 12.40, when a LIGHT-MANTLED SOOTY ALBATROSS passed from east to west
across our wake. Surfing the swells produced speeds of up to 17 Kts. Cruised the
western and northern shores of Lady Julia Percy Is. (LJPI) from 14.30 to 14.55.
Docked at 16.00.
FISH:
The sounder detected large shoals of bait-fish near the surface out
wide.
MAMMALS: About 5 Australian Fur Seals
were scattered across the inshore and offshore zones and there were 1,000’s at
LJPI.
BIRDS: 26 species of seabird beyond
the river mouth indicated good diversity but none were really abundant and some
(e.g. Black-browed Albatross) notable by their scarcity. The highlights are in
capitals. Unless noted otherwise, those listed below were near or beyond the
shelf break (i.e. pelagic).
Little
Penguin: 1 on
LJPI.
S.
Giant Petrel: 1 juv.
Cape
Petrel: 1.
Great-winged Petrel: 50 (30), (45 gouldi, 5
nominate race); all beyond the shelf.
WHITE-HEADED PETREL: 8 (2), 3
offshore.
Fairy
Prion: 2 (1).
WHITE-CHINNED PETREL:
1.
Flesh-footed Shearwater: 6 (2), 1 offshore
& 1 inshore.
Short-tailed Shearwater: 30 (6); all areas
but most inshore.
Fluttering Shearwater: 6
inshore.
Wandering Albatross: 2 stage 3
exulans together.
Black-browed Albatross: 1 ONLY, a juv
melanophris near shelf-break.
Shy
Albatross: cauta 40 (20), (3 inshore, 12 offshore). One dark-headed
juv.
Yellow-nosed Albatross: 4 (2), (2
offshore).
LIGHT-MANTLED SOOTY ALBATROSS: 1 juv.
offshore.
Wilson’s Storm-Petrel: 30 (14), 2
offshore.
GREY-BACKED STORM-PETREL:
1.
White-faced Storm-Petrel: 6
(2).
Australasian Gannet: c. 70, (26 inshore, 40
offshore & 4 pelagic).
Black-faced Cormorant: 2 on
LJPI.
Great
Cormorant: 1 off PF.
ARCTIC
JAEGER: 2; 1 juv. & 1 dark-phase ad. retaining
tail-streamers.
Kelp
Gull: 6 ads. on LJPI.
Silver
Gull: 25 on LJPI.
Crested Tern: 8, (1 inshore, 1 offshore
& 6 pelagic or adjacent).
ARCTIC
TERN: 2.
