Seabird sites in southern Africa
Plumpudding and Sinclair Islands
Jessica Kemper
Plumpudding Island
Situated about
600m offshore, Plumpudding Island (27 29 S, 15 31 E) is a
roughly rectangular, tiny island of less than 1 ha. Upon landing
on Plumpudding Island, one immediately feels like a giant
amongst dwarves, as everything on the island seems to be at a
miniature scale. There are two small buildings, once used as
permanent accommodation for island headmen guarding the island
and guano collectors during the guano season, a tiny gravelly
beach on the south side, a miniature hill, a short jetty and a
small cave full of breeding African Penguins. Currently there
are about 250-300 adult penguins on Plumpudding Island. In
addition, Bank Cormorants, Crowned Cormorants, Cape Comorants
and a few Kelp Gulls breed on the island. Swift Terns roost on
the island. Despite the proximity to Sinclair Island, no seals
frequent Plumpudding Island.
Photo Jessica Kemper
Only hungry seamen would dream up Plumpudding Island from this shape!
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Photo Jessica Kemper
Penguins on Plumpudding Island
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Sinclair Island
Sinclair Island (27 40 S, 15 31 E) lies just
3 km south of
Plumpudding Island, roughly 100 m from the mainland and
represents the southernmost important seabird island in Namibia
- the next seabird island to the south is at Bird Island (Lamberts
Bay). Sealing was an important activity on Sinclair Island
until the early 1980s.
A total of 235 000 seal pups were
harvested from the island since the beginning of the
20th century, an average of 3 500 pups per year.
The three small houses offered accommodation for a small number of
temporary staff, but processing of the seals took place on
Possession Island. Guano has been collected too, but only on a
small scale.
Access to the 3.2 ha island can be rather hair-raising, and
involves jumping from a boat onto slippery boulders amongst
irate seals, without getting swept off the rocks by the next
wave. A high concrete wall has been built in the vicinity of
the houses on the east side of the island, apparently to offer
some protection to the seabirds from the seals. Within the
wall, there are two small penguin breeding colonies, surrounded
by numerous seals which have found their way into the
"enclosure". How the penguin colonies have survived
to this date is a bit of a mystery, since seals constantly
bulldoze their way past the penguins to and from the sea. Some
more penguins nest inside the now empty houses, shoulder to
shoulder (or flipper to flipper) with more seals, with a few
isolated penguin nests stoically scattered along the enclosure
wall. Penguin numbers are estimated to be about 250-300 adult
individuals.
Small numbers of Bank Cormorants, Cape Cormorants,
Crowned Cormorants and Kelp Gulls also breed on the island.
African Black Oystercatchers and Hartlaub's Gull frequent the
island. Owing to their remoteness, the seabirds on Plumpudding
and Sinclair islands are only counted once a year during early
December. Like the other Namibian islands, the two islands are
managed by the Ministry of Fisheries and Marine Resources and
landing without a permit is prohibited.
Photo Jessica Kemper
Sinclair Island is deserted by humans, and the penguins have taken over
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Photo Jessica Kemper
Doing a census from the wall on Sinclair Island
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