The first
thing that struck me when I read the colour brochure about the new tourism
facilities at Bird Island next to Lambert’s Bay, was how much the sheer
number of birds on the island resembled the crowd that flock to the
Newlands cricket grounds for a test match.
But that’s
not where the comparison to cricket stops. On a good day, the thousands of
Cape gannets on the small 3ha island can give even the rowdiest test crowd
a run for their money when it comes to noise level. Of course, that’s to
be expected when 30 000 gannets, cormorants of various kinds and more than
a handful of African penguins all gather together, with the odd seagull
and Cape fur seal thrown in to boot.
Recent
upgrades on the island, thanks to the support of the local community and
Local Economic Development funding, has made Bird Island one of the most
interactive reserves I have visited, and has added it to the ever growing
list of tourist popularities for those on a leisurely exploration of the
West Coast.
Bird
Island, by far the smallest of Cape Nature Conservation’s 34 nature
reserves, is one of six breeding colonies of Cape gannets, and the only
one accessible by foot. It is reached along a causeway that is linked to
the Lambert’s Bay harbour, where fishing trawlers and diamond boats can be
seen hovering.
On a
leisurely stroll all around the island I found a variety of informative
signage with anecdotes about the who’s who and the what’s what of the
seabird colony. For instance, did you know that the huge cement dolosse,
that is used worldwide to protect harbours from the onslaught of waves,
was designed by a South African? Or that a kelp gull chick places its meal
order by pecking on the little red dot on the beak of its mother, which
makes her regurgitate the food she has already digested?
The
attractive tourism facilities also include a mini-aquarium, which houses
some of the West Coast’s well-known marine species, a small coffee shop
for the peckish and a curio shop for the collectors. A friendly guide was
on hand to answer questions. Through a window on the side of the penguin
pool I could also see the underwater antics of the group of pensioned
Charlie Chaplins that have found a safe haven here after surviving traumas
like oil spills or being caught in fishing nets. All this while sipping a
cooldrink! Feeding times are daily at 10:00 and 15:00.
And what
would a truly sensory experience like Bird Island be without a multi-media
dimension? In the auditorium visitors can view a video in Afrikaans,
Xhosa, English or German about the legendary South African guano industry.
Guano (or simply put, seabird droppings) was collected at Bird Island from
1888 to the early 1990s. A short war even erupted in the 1800s, so much in
demand was this “white gold” as fertiliser.
Part of the
tourism facilities also house a small guano museum which tells the story
of this once-thriving industry. It even houses a replica of the bare
bunkers in which the poor souls who were sometimes forcibly sent to the
island to scrape guano, lived. Here’s where the cricket similarities end –
it’s a far cry from the comforts of a dressing room that our modern-day
cricketers are used to.
The main
crowd-pleaser will always be the gannet colony. Pavilion-like seating in
the two-story bird hide, which looks very much like a Flintstones shelter,
provides comfortable viewing and photographic opportunities. The sheer
number of birds all gathered together simply bowled me over.
The best
part of the experience is that you don’t need a pair of binoculars to
recognise the haunting ice-blue ring around a gannet’s eye. A good pair
would, however, give you a greater sense of the action only meters away
from you. Through the one-way glass window, the antics of these birds with
their characteristic yellow heads are clearly seen, whether they are
grooming each other, building nests, making haphazard landings or simply
mulling around in a Mexican wave fashion. The brochure doesn’t lie when
it promised the perfect close-up.
One thing
you might want to pack in with your camera and sunglasses is a good
cricket hat - not necessarily to keep the sun from your eyes, but the
broad rim might just ensure that a gull overhead doesn’t drop in with a
few nasty surprises or two!
* Bird
Island is just three hours drive from Cape Town, and is open daily from
sunrise to sunset. The tariff is R10 (R5 for children). For more
information, contact 083 726 2207 or visit
www.capenature.org.za
Recent
upgrades on the island, thanks to the support of the local community and
Local Economic Development funding, has made Bird Island one of the most
interactive reserves I have visited, and has added it to the ever growing
list of tourist popularities for those on a leisurely exploration of the
West Coast.
