GIF is working with Denis Island to provide an ecotourism product to guests including evening presentations, guided walks, the development of an information centre, pamphlets etc… The wildlife on Denis however is abundant and one does not necessarily have to go looking for it; you can also choose a comfortable location and let it come to you.
A prime example is in the hotel gardens around the restaurant. When the main hotel complex was rebuilt at the end of 2006 the restaurant was extended westwards with a covered decking area that projects out into the gardens. Those choosing to sit there for breakfast, find themselves surrounded on three sides by the natural beauty and wildlife of Denis Island.
Looking North: guests will see flocks of birds feeding on bread put out on the ground by the restaurant staff – typically there will be large numbers of Madagascar fody, Seychelles turtle dove and barred ground dove; 5 or 6 moorhens, mynah birds and the occasional endemic Seychelles fody in a busy whirl of feathered activity. Despite this distraction as the number of clients at table increases some of the Madagascar fodies will take up position on the decking rails in the hope of a titbit from the guests. The few Seychelles fodies that attend take a different approach – perched on the back of a chair across the table from a guest they will, in the manner of a pet dog, fix a diner with an unyielding stare until such time as the induced “mind control” or simple guilt results in the provision of a few choice morsels!
Looking West: the coastal casuarina trees and the veloutier serve to frame and provide vistas of the sea. In the foreground there is a stand of beautiful cordia trees that give shade and provide perches for various birds. There is currently a fairy tern incubating an egg in full view of diners. The egg is on an interesting perch that the bird can not fly directly to. Rather it has to land further down the branch and then climb, through a combination of flapping and sidling, up the branch before carefully lowering itself once more upon the egg. All the birds mentioned above utilise these trees including the moorhens that I have seen well up in the branches on several occasions. The trees also form part of the territory of a pair of endemic Seychelles warblers which can be seen, by the more observant, from time to time gleaning insects from the cordia leaves.
The view south is more open taking in a small garden area with young Guettarda and Casuarina trees. Beyond that lies the hotel’s pool and surrounding decked area and then large veloutier and smaller Bay cedar bushes in an idyllic island holiday scene. The endemic blue pigeon is a common sight in the veloutier bushes feeding on the white berries they produce. The birds thus occupied are particularly indifferent to human attention and make for good photographic subjects.
The airspace in view forms a busy flight path in particular for White terns often in groups of 2 or 3 undertaking their characteristic swooping aerial displays. White-tailed tropicbirds often also pass by amongst others and in November when the island was visited by 500-plus bee-eaters the air was alive with their hawking flights and trilling call as they hunted their insect prey in flashes of colour from dozens of perches.
Every morning is different whether in terms of the breeze, the colour of the sea, the quality of the light or of course the attendant wildlife; and all over a delicious breakfast and a leisurely coffee!
What do you think - worth a visit?
Monday, February 23, 2009
Friday, February 20, 2009
The Moorhen (Gallinula chloropus)
A common sight on Denis today is the Moorhen (Gallinula chloropus). This species will be familiar to most readers (see photos in sidebar) as it has a wide global distribution. It is native to Seychelles and Denis – Fryer recorded the species present on Denis in 1905 and Stoddart described them as common around the marshy areas on the island in 1977. I don’t recall seeing them when I visited Denis in 1998 but Hill (2002) recorded their presence.
When I commenced regular visits to Denis in December 2005, as part of my current work, moorhens were an uncommon sight on the island. In fact it would be more accurate to state that they were not commonly heard and rarely seen. The last 3 years however have seen an explosion of the population with birds and their chicks a common sight all round the island. They are of course very appealing to the guests around the hotel but numbers have reached such a level that they are now considered a pest around the vegetable gardens and hydroponic tunnels as they like to eat the new buds and impact upon production. Concern has also been raised in some quarters that they may be an aggressive competitor to the Seychelles magpie robin, as both are ground feeders, though as yet there is no substantive evidence to support this.
The reason for the population explosion is doubtless directly related to the removal of alien predators from the island, cats in 2000 and rats in 2002, as the moorhen being a ground nesting bird is particularly prone to their attentions. I observed a similar population explosion on Cousine Island in the past. When I started working there in 1993 moorhens were scarce and very timid with perhaps only 3-4 on the island. It soon became apparent that the birds were timid because they were on occasion still trapped for food by workers on the island. We stopped this practice and then (perhaps also linked with the eradication of feral chickens, construction of various ponds and emplacement of standpipes around the island) over the next couple of years the population on the island rocketed. I ringed a lot of birds at the time and monitored the population. As the numbers increased conflicts between neighbouring territories became common place with regular fighting and several observed incidents of infanticide where adults would raid the neighbouring territory and kill the chicks there!
Later as presumably all available territories were occupied we had periodic spates of emigration when whole generations of sub-adults would leave the island apparently en masse. We received confirmed records of birds I had ringed turning up on Cousin and Praslin as well as anecdotal sightings of ringed moorhens as far away as Fregate and Mahe!
Inter-territory fights are starting to become more commonplace now on Denis also and they can be quite vicious and prolonged. I was able to take a few photos of a fight last week and though blurred, they nevertheless communicate the intensity of the conflict quite well (see sidebar).
I have not ringed any Moorhens on Denis – too many other more important issues to follow – so it will be harder to assess but I expect we may soon have groups of sub-adults exiting the island in search of new homes. It may be worthwhile to contact our nearest neighbours on Bird and Aride islands and ask them to keep a look out for sudden influxes of birds.
When I commenced regular visits to Denis in December 2005, as part of my current work, moorhens were an uncommon sight on the island. In fact it would be more accurate to state that they were not commonly heard and rarely seen. The last 3 years however have seen an explosion of the population with birds and their chicks a common sight all round the island. They are of course very appealing to the guests around the hotel but numbers have reached such a level that they are now considered a pest around the vegetable gardens and hydroponic tunnels as they like to eat the new buds and impact upon production. Concern has also been raised in some quarters that they may be an aggressive competitor to the Seychelles magpie robin, as both are ground feeders, though as yet there is no substantive evidence to support this.
The reason for the population explosion is doubtless directly related to the removal of alien predators from the island, cats in 2000 and rats in 2002, as the moorhen being a ground nesting bird is particularly prone to their attentions. I observed a similar population explosion on Cousine Island in the past. When I started working there in 1993 moorhens were scarce and very timid with perhaps only 3-4 on the island. It soon became apparent that the birds were timid because they were on occasion still trapped for food by workers on the island. We stopped this practice and then (perhaps also linked with the eradication of feral chickens, construction of various ponds and emplacement of standpipes around the island) over the next couple of years the population on the island rocketed. I ringed a lot of birds at the time and monitored the population. As the numbers increased conflicts between neighbouring territories became common place with regular fighting and several observed incidents of infanticide where adults would raid the neighbouring territory and kill the chicks there!
Later as presumably all available territories were occupied we had periodic spates of emigration when whole generations of sub-adults would leave the island apparently en masse. We received confirmed records of birds I had ringed turning up on Cousin and Praslin as well as anecdotal sightings of ringed moorhens as far away as Fregate and Mahe!
Inter-territory fights are starting to become more commonplace now on Denis also and they can be quite vicious and prolonged. I was able to take a few photos of a fight last week and though blurred, they nevertheless communicate the intensity of the conflict quite well (see sidebar).
I have not ringed any Moorhens on Denis – too many other more important issues to follow – so it will be harder to assess but I expect we may soon have groups of sub-adults exiting the island in search of new homes. It may be worthwhile to contact our nearest neighbours on Bird and Aride islands and ask them to keep a look out for sudden influxes of birds.
Thursday, February 19, 2009
Seychelles and Madagascar Fodies
On Saturday morning I was undertaking my usual duties round the island when I encountered and was able to photo a male Seychelles Fody in woodland north of the runway. The bird was notable because it was in full breeding colour i.e. with yellow feathers on the forehead and beneath the bill. This is the first bird I recall seeing on Denis in breeding colours.
The Seychelles fody (Foudia Sechellarum) is endemic to the central Seychelles archipelago. Believed to have originally occurred throughout the Praslin Group of islands by the mid-20th century it was confined to 3 small populations on the islands of Fregate, Cousin and Cousine – the decline believed to be linked to predation by rats. In 1965, 5 birds were introduced to D’Arros where they have prospered remarkably. Birds have subsequently been introduced to Aride in 2001 and Denis in 2004. The population of Denis has established with evidence of breeding and population growth. The introduction to Denis contributed to the downgrading of the species’ IUCN redlist status from vulnerable to near threatened in 2006 with the global population now estimated at some 3,500 birds spread between the six populations.
Later that same morning on the southeast coast of the island I encountered a flock of Madagascar Fodies (Foudia madagascariensis) in a stand of young papaya plants. What caught my attention initially was the presence of 4 or 5 males in full breeding colour in adjacent plants. Normally males will defend an area from a prominent perch and chase off other males from their breeding territory but in this case they were not. Rather they were busy displaying to a flock of females that were also in amongst the young papaya plants. The Madagascar fody equivalent of going to the Mall or in the Seychelles context hanging around outside “Codevar” I suppose!!! I was able to photo a couple of the males whose bright red plumage so catches the eye.
The Madagascar fody is generally considered to be introduced, although this has been questioned, and is now one of the most common birds in the central archipelago having reached all islands of any size. The Madagascar species does not appear to represent a threat to the local species with populations coexisting on all islands where the Seychelles fody occurs.
The Seychelles fody (Foudia Sechellarum) is endemic to the central Seychelles archipelago. Believed to have originally occurred throughout the Praslin Group of islands by the mid-20th century it was confined to 3 small populations on the islands of Fregate, Cousin and Cousine – the decline believed to be linked to predation by rats. In 1965, 5 birds were introduced to D’Arros where they have prospered remarkably. Birds have subsequently been introduced to Aride in 2001 and Denis in 2004. The population of Denis has established with evidence of breeding and population growth. The introduction to Denis contributed to the downgrading of the species’ IUCN redlist status from vulnerable to near threatened in 2006 with the global population now estimated at some 3,500 birds spread between the six populations.
Later that same morning on the southeast coast of the island I encountered a flock of Madagascar Fodies (Foudia madagascariensis) in a stand of young papaya plants. What caught my attention initially was the presence of 4 or 5 males in full breeding colour in adjacent plants. Normally males will defend an area from a prominent perch and chase off other males from their breeding territory but in this case they were not. Rather they were busy displaying to a flock of females that were also in amongst the young papaya plants. The Madagascar fody equivalent of going to the Mall or in the Seychelles context hanging around outside “Codevar” I suppose!!! I was able to photo a couple of the males whose bright red plumage so catches the eye.
The Madagascar fody is generally considered to be introduced, although this has been questioned, and is now one of the most common birds in the central archipelago having reached all islands of any size. The Madagascar species does not appear to represent a threat to the local species with populations coexisting on all islands where the Seychelles fody occurs.
Tuesday, February 17, 2009
Seychelles Magpie Robin – Emergency Management
I received a call from Catherina on Tuesday 10th with bad news that an adult magpie-robin had been found dead on the island - worse still it was a female. Catherina packaged up the bird and sent it down on the flight so that I could take it to our partners in the SMR work, Nature Seychelles, for furtherance for post-mortem.
Then Wednesday evening more bad news – an SMR chick had been injured by Mynah birds. As it turns out this chick was the offspring of the dead female and was now only left with male to feed it etc… this he was doing. When four Mynah birds teamed up, however, in an attempt to predate the chick in the nest the male was outnumbered and whilst he fought valiantly with two Mynahs on the ground another flew to the nest and attacked the chick. Fortunately Catherina was in attendance and she was able to get to the nest and scare the Mynah away but not before the chick had suffered several injuries. Catherina took the bird into care, cleaned its injuries and applied terramycin before returning it to the territory. She placed the bird on a perch hidden in the roots of fallen tree as she felt the nest location had been compromised. The chick began calling when replaced and the male soon located and continued to tend to it (just going to show how tough and adaptable SMRs really are!).
The next day when Catherina checked on the bird, however, whilst it seemed ok she noted that its injuries had attracted flies which had laid eggs around the wounds. She cleaned them off; but this was soon repeated and so she called me that Wednesday evening to see if I could bring some suitable medicine. It was late so nothing could be done that night and I was due to travel to Denis the next morning so time would be tight.
At 08:00hrs the next morning I contacted Denis Matatiken (Director General of the Nature Conservation Division) in the Department of Environment (DoE) explained to hi the situation to him and asked if he could organise something from the Government vet. Unfortunately it wasn’t possible to get the medicines to me before the flight took off that morning but they were put on Friday morning’s flight. Two ointments and detailed instructions were received and were proving successful in deterring flies when I left the island on Saturday. Our thanks go to Denis, Wilna Accouche and Majella Athanase of the DoE and the Veterinary Department for their help in this regard.
On the Thursday, I observed and photo’d (see sidebar) Catherina cleaning the fly eggs off the chick and also assisted with the reapplication of Terramycin. Apart from its injuries which were healing the chick looked very well and also readily begged for and took the insects that Catherina offered it. I was struck by how comfortable the chick appeared in Catherina’s hands only lightly struggling when she turned it on its back to clean its stomach plumage. Catherina is dedicated to the birds and clearly has an instinctive empathy for the animals that the birds seem able to detect. Catherina then returned the bird to its perch and also rigged a plastic roof for it in case of rain that night. Whilst we were at Catherina’s place we received a visit from “Charlie” the robin that Catherina raised by hand last year who looked in excellent condition.
Catherina will monitor the chick closely over the coming days and if necessary take the bird into captivity as was the case with Charlie, but it is preferable if at all possible that the bird be raised by its remaining parent in its natal territory.
The rarity of the SMR means that the population on Denis receives individual attention from Catherina. Each bird is important as underlined by the cooperation of various agencies in this emergency management exercise. Let’s hope it bears fruit!
Do check back for updates on the progress of this bird and the Denis population in general.
Then Wednesday evening more bad news – an SMR chick had been injured by Mynah birds. As it turns out this chick was the offspring of the dead female and was now only left with male to feed it etc… this he was doing. When four Mynah birds teamed up, however, in an attempt to predate the chick in the nest the male was outnumbered and whilst he fought valiantly with two Mynahs on the ground another flew to the nest and attacked the chick. Fortunately Catherina was in attendance and she was able to get to the nest and scare the Mynah away but not before the chick had suffered several injuries. Catherina took the bird into care, cleaned its injuries and applied terramycin before returning it to the territory. She placed the bird on a perch hidden in the roots of fallen tree as she felt the nest location had been compromised. The chick began calling when replaced and the male soon located and continued to tend to it (just going to show how tough and adaptable SMRs really are!).
The next day when Catherina checked on the bird, however, whilst it seemed ok she noted that its injuries had attracted flies which had laid eggs around the wounds. She cleaned them off; but this was soon repeated and so she called me that Wednesday evening to see if I could bring some suitable medicine. It was late so nothing could be done that night and I was due to travel to Denis the next morning so time would be tight.
At 08:00hrs the next morning I contacted Denis Matatiken (Director General of the Nature Conservation Division) in the Department of Environment (DoE) explained to hi the situation to him and asked if he could organise something from the Government vet. Unfortunately it wasn’t possible to get the medicines to me before the flight took off that morning but they were put on Friday morning’s flight. Two ointments and detailed instructions were received and were proving successful in deterring flies when I left the island on Saturday. Our thanks go to Denis, Wilna Accouche and Majella Athanase of the DoE and the Veterinary Department for their help in this regard.
On the Thursday, I observed and photo’d (see sidebar) Catherina cleaning the fly eggs off the chick and also assisted with the reapplication of Terramycin. Apart from its injuries which were healing the chick looked very well and also readily begged for and took the insects that Catherina offered it. I was struck by how comfortable the chick appeared in Catherina’s hands only lightly struggling when she turned it on its back to clean its stomach plumage. Catherina is dedicated to the birds and clearly has an instinctive empathy for the animals that the birds seem able to detect. Catherina then returned the bird to its perch and also rigged a plastic roof for it in case of rain that night. Whilst we were at Catherina’s place we received a visit from “Charlie” the robin that Catherina raised by hand last year who looked in excellent condition.
Catherina will monitor the chick closely over the coming days and if necessary take the bird into captivity as was the case with Charlie, but it is preferable if at all possible that the bird be raised by its remaining parent in its natal territory.
The rarity of the SMR means that the population on Denis receives individual attention from Catherina. Each bird is important as underlined by the cooperation of various agencies in this emergency management exercise. Let’s hope it bears fruit!
Do check back for updates on the progress of this bird and the Denis population in general.
Sunday, February 15, 2009
Nature Watch
I am just back from a visit to the island and have a lot of topics to cover so hopefully, other work permitting, I will be able to make up for the dearth of posts over the last week or so. It is the rainy season at the moment in the central archipelago and we have been having a lot of precipitation on Mahe over the last few weeks. Denis however being small, isolated and flat does not get as much rain as the mountainous granite islands – but on approaching the island on Thursday it was clear that there had been rain as the island was a lush green colour. Indeed as we landed the clouds opened again and it rained steadily for a couple of hours that afternoon. After that however the weather cleared and was fare for the next couple of days enabling me to get around and catch up on developments.
There has been considerable sand movement since my last visit with the distinct sand promontory known as “Pte Madame Guichard” having now reformed and reaching some 50 metres out off the west coast of the island.
As I mentioned the vegetation on the island has benefitted from the rain but Belle Etoile (the cattle meadow on the east coast) has been transformed. A couple of months back I noted how it was brown and all the vegetation had died back revealing the actual lie of the land. Well the grass is once more knee high and upwards, the tortoise tree coppices are in full leaf and many of the saplings planted for coastal rehabilitation which were looking doubtful last year are showing signs of new vigour!
Moving further south I went to check on the tropicbird chick “T2” ground nest to find the bird has fledged. On checking with island staff I was advised it had successfully fledged the week before – so that now makes two successful fledglings from 3 ground nests – a most encouraging start!
Continuing south to the southern point I emerged on the beach to see a heron perched on the southern rocks. It’s unusual to see herons on the island and the light was very bright in effect silhouetting the bird such that I couldn’t really determine its plumage colour. I took a few photos from a distance in the hope that I may be able to discern more detail once they were transferred to the computer screen and then slowly made my way forward. The heron was however vary wary of my presence and before I could move any significant distance closer it took flight eastwards before arcing north and west out of sight up the coast. I was still not sure of its species and so decided to pursue it assuming it would head for the rock promontory on the east coast at Belle Etoile which would provide it with a safe perch surrounded as it is on three sides by the sea.
However as I turned to head back my eye was a caught by a familiar silhouette perched at the top of a casuarina sapling – it was a Bee eater. There are a few still on the island from the mass invasion we experienced in November (See post of 29th November 2008) and Catherina has subsequently told me that the island received another influx of 20 or so birds at the beginning of the month. I took a few shots of it before heading north up the coast in pursuit of the heron. I followed the coast initially but as I reached the Belle Etoile meadows I cut back in land so as to obscure my approach with the vegetation. When I got there however, I was disappointed to find the bird was not where I had anticipated and thinking it had likely flown further north decided to resume my previous path. As I turned to head south once more I saw it, its head bobbing up from behind a sandstone outcrop further south – it was observing me not vice versa!!!
Clearly this bird was very wary and knew of my presence so I cut back in land and tried to approach through some thicker vegetation. Again the bird was smarter than me and was looking directly at me when I emerged from my supposedly hidden route! I took a few more photos from some considerable distance and then accepting defeat left the bird in peace.
On getting back to Mahe I have looked carefully at the photos and magnified them using the usual software. It is a grey heron (Ardea cinerea) it looks like a sub-adult with not all the adult plumage developed; with for example only the beginnings of the black plumes on its head and its legs still a grey colour. This is my first record of a grey heron on Denis, though I am sure they must visit from time to time, but interestingly the timidity of this bird distinguishes it from the very bold birds found on Mahe and suggests that it is just passing through and normally frequents more tranquil parts or alternatively a place where it has reason to fear man.
There has been considerable sand movement since my last visit with the distinct sand promontory known as “Pte Madame Guichard” having now reformed and reaching some 50 metres out off the west coast of the island.
As I mentioned the vegetation on the island has benefitted from the rain but Belle Etoile (the cattle meadow on the east coast) has been transformed. A couple of months back I noted how it was brown and all the vegetation had died back revealing the actual lie of the land. Well the grass is once more knee high and upwards, the tortoise tree coppices are in full leaf and many of the saplings planted for coastal rehabilitation which were looking doubtful last year are showing signs of new vigour!
Moving further south I went to check on the tropicbird chick “T2” ground nest to find the bird has fledged. On checking with island staff I was advised it had successfully fledged the week before – so that now makes two successful fledglings from 3 ground nests – a most encouraging start!
Continuing south to the southern point I emerged on the beach to see a heron perched on the southern rocks. It’s unusual to see herons on the island and the light was very bright in effect silhouetting the bird such that I couldn’t really determine its plumage colour. I took a few photos from a distance in the hope that I may be able to discern more detail once they were transferred to the computer screen and then slowly made my way forward. The heron was however vary wary of my presence and before I could move any significant distance closer it took flight eastwards before arcing north and west out of sight up the coast. I was still not sure of its species and so decided to pursue it assuming it would head for the rock promontory on the east coast at Belle Etoile which would provide it with a safe perch surrounded as it is on three sides by the sea.
However as I turned to head back my eye was a caught by a familiar silhouette perched at the top of a casuarina sapling – it was a Bee eater. There are a few still on the island from the mass invasion we experienced in November (See post of 29th November 2008) and Catherina has subsequently told me that the island received another influx of 20 or so birds at the beginning of the month. I took a few shots of it before heading north up the coast in pursuit of the heron. I followed the coast initially but as I reached the Belle Etoile meadows I cut back in land so as to obscure my approach with the vegetation. When I got there however, I was disappointed to find the bird was not where I had anticipated and thinking it had likely flown further north decided to resume my previous path. As I turned to head south once more I saw it, its head bobbing up from behind a sandstone outcrop further south – it was observing me not vice versa!!!
Clearly this bird was very wary and knew of my presence so I cut back in land and tried to approach through some thicker vegetation. Again the bird was smarter than me and was looking directly at me when I emerged from my supposedly hidden route! I took a few more photos from some considerable distance and then accepting defeat left the bird in peace.
On getting back to Mahe I have looked carefully at the photos and magnified them using the usual software. It is a grey heron (Ardea cinerea) it looks like a sub-adult with not all the adult plumage developed; with for example only the beginnings of the black plumes on its head and its legs still a grey colour. This is my first record of a grey heron on Denis, though I am sure they must visit from time to time, but interestingly the timidity of this bird distinguishes it from the very bold birds found on Mahe and suggests that it is just passing through and normally frequents more tranquil parts or alternatively a place where it has reason to fear man.
Wednesday, February 4, 2009
Migratory Birds.
Work has kept me away from the island of late and likely will for awhile yet. I do however have various notes from December still to recount. It is now of course the peak of winter in the northern hemisphere and the island continues to play host to various migrants and vagrants.
On the 26th November whilst doing a turtle check I observed a very large flock of whimbrels (Numenius phaeopus) on the reef flats off the north east coast of the island. I had never seen such a large aggregation so attempted to count them. There are of course difficulties in counting a large number of birds as they tend not to stand still whilst you’re counting! I did 3 counts stopping each time when I could no longer keep track of the birds following their movement and my minimum total was 105 while I estimate there were approximately 115 birds in the flock!
Anne-Marie made some very interesting and new records for Denis over December, underlining the importance of an experienced eye:
On the 26th November whilst doing a turtle check I observed a very large flock of whimbrels (Numenius phaeopus) on the reef flats off the north east coast of the island. I had never seen such a large aggregation so attempted to count them. There are of course difficulties in counting a large number of birds as they tend not to stand still whilst you’re counting! I did 3 counts stopping each time when I could no longer keep track of the birds following their movement and my minimum total was 105 while I estimate there were approximately 115 birds in the flock!
Anne-Marie made some very interesting and new records for Denis over December, underlining the importance of an experienced eye:
- 5th December: 1 Curlew (Numenius arquata) amongst the whimbrels at Belle Etoile.
- 6th December: 2 white wagtails (Motacilla alba) at the pig farm.
- 9th December: 2 Lesser sand plovers (Charadrius mongolus) at Belle Etoile.
- 10th December: 2 Red-throated pipits (Anthus cervinus), one of which was a male in full colour, at the west end of the runway.
On the 9th of December Anne-Marie and I spotted and were able to photograph a Yellow wagtail (Motacilla flava) at the pig farm (see sidebar).
Finally in early January, island resident RMM spotted and photo’d a small tern on and around the coast of the island. it was either a Little or Saunders tern but these are hard to differentiate so he sought assistance from Adrian Skerrett of the Seychelles Bird Record Committee (SBRC) – see link in side bar.
Adrian replied that it was almost certainly a Saunders’ tern (Sternula saundersi)
“...Birds in non-breeding plumage are extremely difficult to tell apart just from photos, but we know from the first birds arriving in Seychelles in September and the last ones leaving in April in breeding plumage that they are almost always Saunders’. In fact we have only once confirmed Little Tern. Features pointing to Saunders in the photos were:
1. The primaries of Saunders Tern have black shafts and Little Tern white. No white was discernible in the pictures, but it could possibly be hidden. If ever you find a dead bird, check this feature.
2. The extent of the black in the primaries is greater in Saunders’. The photos appeared to show extensive black but this is difficult to judge without a comparison.
3. Saunders’ Tern is uniform above whereas Little Tern has a contrasting white rump. This feature is obvious in breeding birds but less so in non-breeding. However the photos certainly appeared to show very uniform upperparts pointing to Saunders’.
Basically I would say it’s 99% certain to be Saunders’.”
The Green Islands Foundation (GIF) was registered in April 2006 with
the objective of bridging the gap between private sector operations and
national environmental initiatives as a means of mainstreaming
sustainable development.
The most widely recognised definition of sustainable development originates from the Brundtland Report[1]:
"Sustainable development is development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. It contains within it two key concepts:
· the concept of needs, in particular the essential needs of the world's poor, to which overriding priority should be given; and
· the idea of limitations imposed by the state of technology and social organization on the environment's ability to meet present and future needs."
Despite this definition being generally recognised it does of course leave considerable leeway for interpretation (and some might say abuse). The ongoing work under the Rio Conventions and the UNCED/WSSD process continue to refine and attempt to realise different aspects of sustainability – but still many would argue that sustainability as per the above definition is impossible to obtain, or at least that “the goalposts” - as it were - are continually moving.
Sustainable development is conceptualised as being built on three pillars relating to economic development, human welfare and environmental management – and the finding of a balance between these three perceived necessities.
The current global and Seychelles’ national economic crisis therefore puts the pursuit of sustainable development at risk due to the likely skewing of priorities towards the economic to the detriment of sound environmental management. Plus of course struggling families will typically look more to the environment as a direct source of revenue and sustenance placing greater pressure on natural resources.
GIF looks to promote the mainstreaming of sustainable development in the Seychelles’ context by working with private sector operations in the country’s main economic sectors i.e. tourism, fisheries and production landscapes. GIF is working with Denis Island on a five-year programme in the pursuit of sustainable development (for more information go to: http://denisisland.blogspot.com ). The approach taken in this work is one of a process of improvement: assessing standards, setting targets to improve upon the status quo and moving forward... always looking to lessen environmental impact whilst fostering human well-being and options for diversified development. So to misquote that horrible business-speak cliché “it’s more about the journey than the destination”.
I hope very soon to be able to post on a new initiative that GIF is seeking to undertake in the domain of fisheries in the granitic islands – so do check back.
[1] World Commission on Environment and Development (WCED). Our common future. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1987.
The most widely recognised definition of sustainable development originates from the Brundtland Report[1]:
"Sustainable development is development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. It contains within it two key concepts:
· the concept of needs, in particular the essential needs of the world's poor, to which overriding priority should be given; and
· the idea of limitations imposed by the state of technology and social organization on the environment's ability to meet present and future needs."
Despite this definition being generally recognised it does of course leave considerable leeway for interpretation (and some might say abuse). The ongoing work under the Rio Conventions and the UNCED/WSSD process continue to refine and attempt to realise different aspects of sustainability – but still many would argue that sustainability as per the above definition is impossible to obtain, or at least that “the goalposts” - as it were - are continually moving.
Sustainable development is conceptualised as being built on three pillars relating to economic development, human welfare and environmental management – and the finding of a balance between these three perceived necessities.
The current global and Seychelles’ national economic crisis therefore puts the pursuit of sustainable development at risk due to the likely skewing of priorities towards the economic to the detriment of sound environmental management. Plus of course struggling families will typically look more to the environment as a direct source of revenue and sustenance placing greater pressure on natural resources.
GIF looks to promote the mainstreaming of sustainable development in the Seychelles’ context by working with private sector operations in the country’s main economic sectors i.e. tourism, fisheries and production landscapes. GIF is working with Denis Island on a five-year programme in the pursuit of sustainable development (for more information go to: http://denisisland.blogspot.com ). The approach taken in this work is one of a process of improvement: assessing standards, setting targets to improve upon the status quo and moving forward... always looking to lessen environmental impact whilst fostering human well-being and options for diversified development. So to misquote that horrible business-speak cliché “it’s more about the journey than the destination”.
I hope very soon to be able to post on a new initiative that GIF is seeking to undertake in the domain of fisheries in the granitic islands – so do check back.
[1] World Commission on Environment and Development (WCED). Our common future. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1987.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
