Our first stop today was Carcass Island. This island has been inhabited continuously since 1872, and is named for a survey ship which explored the area in the 1760's, HMS Carcass. Once ashore, some of us opted for a short hike around the bay, while others opted to land directly in front of the settlement. Here we enjoyed exceptional views of waterfowl and shorebirds. As we wandered along the beach, black and pied oystercatchers announced our presence with loud whistling "keeps." We spotted Patagonian crested ducks and several geese. Tussac birds hopped between our feet while the occasional dark-faced ground tyrant alighted nearby. It was truly a stupendous morning for birding!
As we drank in the glorious wildlife, we also drank in the hospitality of our hosts, Rob and Lorraine McGill. The McGill's have owned the island for 26 years. Agnes Hoggarth spent several days baking for us and we enjoyed an incredible selection of goodies with tea made from natural Falkland spring water. With full spirits and stomachs we departed the McGills' home and made the short jaunt to the afternoon's destination.
Following another scrumptious lunch and a small rest we arrived at New Island, our last stop in the Falklands. This island was named after New Bedford and other New England ports where many of the North American whaling and sealing vessels came from. It is also the site of the only shore-based whaling operation in the Falklands, which operated from 1909 to 1916, when it was dismantled and moved to South Georgia because of poor profits.
Taking advantage of the unusually fine weather, many of us took a vigorous four mile hike through native vegetation, around prion burrows, and past Falkland fur seals frolicking in the water and reclining on large boulders. This site is one of the few places Falkland fur seal colonies can be found. As our hike ended, we joined up with the "short-hikers" to gaze upon nesting black-browed albatross, imperial shags and rockhopper penguins. Returning to the landing site we spotted the brilliant red breasts of long-tailed meadowlarks and watched timid cottontails scamper into the protective covering of gorse.
