Replica of the Fastnet Lighthouse, the 'Teardrop of Ireland'.

Mizen Head and Barleycove

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Strolling in the glorious sunshine at Barleycove Beach
Strolling in the glorious sunshine at Barleycove Beach
Southerly Stunners
Our Sunday trip was filled with sun, jaw dropping scenery, epic coastline and some ridiculously cute donkeys to boot! Mizen Head and Barleycove are two spectacular locations down in the most Southerly parts of Ireland. The waters here team with life and in the summer particularly it is not unusual to see whales, basking sharks, seals and a plethora of birds with regularity.
Mizen Head is drenched in history and has played a significant role in the culture, development and pride of the local community.

Replica of the Fastnet Lighthouse, the 'Teardrop of Ireland'.
Replica of the Fastnet Lighthouse, the ‘Teardrop of Ireland’.

The Teardrop of Ireland
In 1847 an American liner, the SS Stephen Whitney sank off Crookhaven with the loss of 92 lives. The Irish Lights Board decided to build a lighthouse on Fastnet Rock as the Cape Clear island lighthouse was too far inland. This was the first landfall after America and was called the ‘Teardrop of Ireland’ as it was the last place that Irish emigrants saw when they left Ireland. The first lighthouse was built in 1854 and lasted till 1891 but had to be replaced as it was made of iron and was unable to withstand the merciless fury of the Atlantic ocean.
It was rebuilt in 1899 using Cornish granite and was completed in 1903. Each block of granite weighed 3 tonnes and were interlocked for maximum strength and protection.

The dramatic cliffs that surround the headland at Mizen Head
The dramatic cliffs that surround the headland at Mizen Head

Six men kept watch at Fastnet Rock, four at a time and two on leave. Reliefs were twice a month when the men were taken off duty. Each man worked 4 weeks on, 2 weeks off. One man had to stay on watch during the day to look out for fog and signal passing ships. As soon as fog was seen, another man was called up to work the fog signal.

When there were so many men at the tower they slept three to a bunk. They were all turned out at 5am and were made to wash themselves thoroughly, turning out all their bedding to air and washing down the barracks. This way the men stayed healthy.

As far as the eye can see, next stop America!
As far as the eye can see, next stop America!

Mizen Head History
In 1906 the Board of Trade along with the Irish Lights Board decided to build a fog signal station on Cloghane Island, Mizen Head. In 1909 the fog signal was established and in bad visual conditions the keepers manually set off a charge of explosives at 3 minute intervals. The arched bridge was built between 1908-1910 to connect the island to the mainland. The design was picked from a competition that was run to create the best bridge. The bridge is 172 feet (54 m) across by 150 feet (50 m) above sea level.

In 1931 a wireless beacon was installed at Mizen Head and in 1959 a light was placed on the rocks at the end of the head at a height of 180 feet (60m) with a range of 13 miles in clear weather. The fog signal was discontinued in the 1970’s when sonar and satellite navigation (GPS) took over. Mizen Head Signal Station has participated in the whole history of radio communication.

Bridge at Mizen Head.
Bridge at Mizen Head.

The local village of Crookhaven was the first and last port of call for ships going between Northern European ports and America. The ships stocked up on fuel and provisions before tackling the Atlantic ocean. A flurry of small boats would meet the arriving ships, swarming around them to get business. Lots of these boats came from the UK and were commisioned by Reuters and Lloyds agents.

Reuters and Lloyds agents had flag signalling and semaphore equipment up on the nearby headland of Brow Head to communicate with passing ships. At the end of the 19th century there were so many boats in the harbour that you could walk across the decks from one side of the bay to the other. Up to 700 people lived and worked in the village during this period. Currently there are only 29 permanent residents living in Crookhaven.

Local house overlooking to  Brow Head.
Local house overlooking to Brow Head.

How Marconi came to Crookhaven
In 1896 the famous Italian inventor, Guglielmo Marconi went to England to file the worlds first patent for a telegraphy system using Hertzian waves. In 1899 he acquired a premises in Essex and established communication across the English channel. He was desperate to get a signal across the Atlantic and searched for a suitable for his masts. After much research he found the village of Crookhaven. In 1902 he established a telegraphic station here using a coherer receiver. He brought wireless operators from England with him.

Marconi worked with the Irish Lights Board in 1904 to put telegraphic equipment aerials on Fastnet Rock. The station was then moved to Brow Head as there had been a long established tradition of using signal equipment and Brow Head is also the most Southerly tip of Ireland. The telegraphic messages were sent from Fastnet by signalling and then relayed to Brow Head by wireless telegraphy and relayed onto UK and Northern European boat owners and companies.

The most Southerly part of Ireland.
The most Southerly part of Ireland.

Initially a few ships started to use telegraphy equipment on board. The signal stations might be in touch with one ship at a time but by 1904 the telegraphers were in touch with at least six. In Crookhaven there were 6 operators initially working in the village. After they were relocated to Brow Head they had to make the lonely trudge up to the exposed headland. They worked on 3 watches: Midnight-8am, 8am-4pm, 4pm-midnight. There always be two operators on each shift.

A shift broke its shaft 80m from Crookhaven in 1904. Fitted with Marconi equipment, hundreds of messages streamed back and forth to her as passengers contacted families and friends. Assistance was sent for immediately and she was back on course without any mishap. Marconi’s invention had thus taken much of the fear out of the sea.

Meeting the locals!
Meeting the locals!

After Marconi had achieved transatlantic messaging and more shipping fleets were equipped with his technology, it was unnecessary to be close to shipping and man a station so the station was closed at Brow Head. Crookhaven reverted to a quiet fishing port.

The End of an Era
The signal station at Mizen Head was automated in 1993. The same year with a lease from the Irish Lights Board and with funding from the rural development LEADER programme, the local community of Goleen decided to reopen Mizen Head as a tourist attraction. Murphys, West Cork Bottling, Cork County Council and Ford helped match the funding to open the centre to the public. This attraction is now internationally renowned and has hosted over a million visitors!

Happy days with these gorgeous donkeys.
Happy days with these gorgeous donkeys.

Barleycove
The dreamy, beautiful Barleycove beach was formed under auspicious circumstances. The sand dunes there were thrown up by a tidal wave that swept through Europe after an earthquake in Lisbon in 1755. Today the dunes are now partially eroded but the beach and surrounds are designated as a Special Area of Conservation. It is host to a diverse range of habitats and wildlife that preside in and around the sand dunes.

The fancy bridge at Barleycove.
The fancy bridge at Barleycove.

The New Zealand Sea Lion – A Conservation Comeback and Conundrum

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Adult female New Zealand sea lion
Adult female New Zealand sea lion

Walking through the undulating dunes, I saw a big furry creature swaddled in the couch grass. The shaggy beast looked a lot like a bear, but we were in the wrong domain for such a creature. I was out leading a tour group in my capacity as a wildlife guide. The location was South Island, New Zealand and the animal that lay before us was the New Zealand Sea Lion, which is genetically related to bears. A thick pelt of fur envelopes their body and the male acquires an impressive mane around his neck as he matures. Like his terrestrial cousin, the New Zealand Sea Lion is a top predator: His quarry tends to be fish, squid, octopus, crabs and the occasional penguin.

Adult male sea lion
Adult male sea lion

On Sea lions, the razor-sharp claws of a bear have been sheathed inside a membranous flipper. This flipper propels them through their watery lair, as well as allowing them to capture prey. The Sea Lion also has a thick layer of blubber, which insulates it from the frigid water as it descends to deeper realms.Much of the population lives on the subantarctic Campbell and Auckland Islands, with a tiny population living on the mainland. The species’ conservation status is listed as ‘’nationally critical’’– the highest threat status given in New Zealand. In short, the New Zealand Sea Lion is one of the most threatened Sea Lions in the world, and quite possibly the rarest.

Waiting for Mum
Waiting for Mum

NEW ZEALAND SEA LION HISTORY

No humans lived in New Zealand until about 1,000 years ago, when Maori tribes arrived from Polynesia and settled around the country, subsisting on various plants and animals. Over time all of the Sea Lions were decimated for food and fur– first by the Maori and later by European settlers. By the 1800s, the Sea Lion was extinct in New Zealand. In 1993, a lone female New Zealand Sea Lion was found by a farmer at Taieri Mouth, on the lower South Island. The farmer contacted the Department of Conservation, confused about the “blonde seal” he found on his property. This female (subsequently called “Mum”) had been tagged by researchers as a pup on the Auckland Islands in 1986. For reasons unknown, she’d traveled 435 miles to settle on New Zealand’s Otago peninsula. She also happened to be pregnant. Females are not known to venture far from where they were born, so Mum’s epic journey was all the more remarkable.

Adult female coming ashore
Adult female coming ashore

THE POPULATION REBOUNDS

Mum’s solo journey became a beacon of hope for this flagging species. Males from the subantarctic islands had begun populating the Otago peninsula in the early 1980s. With the arrival of Mum and the birth of her daughter, this was the beginning of a small breeding population. Over the next 17 years Mum produced 11 pups, many of which were female. Each pup born on the South Island is very precious, particularly to the New Zealand Sea Lion Trust and the Department of Conservation. These organizations keep a close watch on the New Zealand Sea Lion population, both on the mainland and the islands. Every Sea Lion pup that has been born on the mainland since 1993 has been tagged and named. Mum’s first pup, named Katya, went on to have 10 pups of her own. When new pups are born, every effort is made to keep them safe from potential threats, including dogs.

Sea lion pup
Sea lion pup

THE SOUTH ISLAND SEA LION EXPANSION

The South Island population has since grown to approximately 160 Sea Lions, but only a tenth or so are female. This skew in the sexes creates an interesting, sometimes lethal social dynamic. When male/female ratios are more natural, a harem system exists: The strongest mature males (or “bulls”) fight for the right to breed with a number of females. This dominant male, known as the beach master, can preside over up to 25 females. This type of harem is often seen around the Auckland and Campbell Islands, where New Zealand Sea Lions are found in greater numbers. On the South coast beaches of the Otago peninsula and the Catlins, the low numbers of female sea lions has resulted in some confusion. Sexually charged males look– sometimes in vain– for females to corral into a harem of their own. Juvenile males look similar to females, being both lighter in color and smaller than the beach masters. Mature males can weigh from 250-400 kgs, while mature females weigh between 100-160 kgs. As the male develops, his fur turns from a light brown/tan color to dark brown and the thick mane around his neck becomes more impressive. Females are very pale by comparison (almost the color of sand), and blend in exceedingly well with their surroundings.

Male with 'harem'
Male with ‘harem’

An amorous male in these areas, having seen a juvenile male approaching his patch, will sometimes approach the young interloper. Their initial exchanges can range from bluff and bluster, to playful interactions, to the older male actually seducing the younger. It’s not unusual along the Otago coast to see a large male surrounded by his “women,” which are actually juvenile or sub-adult males! When a bona fide female is in the area, it can create quite a stir and become a challenging encounter for her. Males sometimes run at her en masse, blocking her path back to the water to escape. She can be particularly vulnerable if she has a young pup with her. In all the excitement, some females have inadvertently been killed from too many males wanting to mate with them. Despite these issues, it’s a positive sign to see New Zealand Sea Lion numbers slowly but surely increasing. Since Mum arrived on the mainland, an unrelated female named Marea settled in the Catlins in 2006 and proceeded to breed there. Their offspring have now established small breeding populations on South Island as well as Stewart Island, a small inhabited island located to the south.

Juvenile male
Juvenile male

CURRENT CONSERVATION CONCERNS

In the subantarctic islands the numbers of New Zealand Sea Lions has been steadily dropping. The breeding population decreased by 50% between 2000 and 2015, and there are now only around 9,000 remaining. The reasons for the decline are numerous. There’s a large squid fishing industry off Auckland and Campbell Islands, where Sea Lion deaths have been caused by accidental bycatch in fishing nets and trawls. When a female dies, she most likely orphans a pup onshore, who will die without her. She’s also likely to be pregnant with another pup. Two other serious problems are disease and starvation. In 1998 an outbreak of an unknown disease caused the deaths of over 50% of the pups and 20% of the females in the Auckland Islands. In 2002 and 2003 the Sea Lions suffered heavy mortalities due to the bacterial infection Klebsiella pneumoniae. This caused the deaths of 32% of the pups within the first few months of life in 2002 and 21% in 2003.

Adult female
Adult female

Reduced prey availability is another major cause of adult and pup mortality. A significant death toll was exerted on the Campbell Island population this year, with 58% of the pups dying within the first month. Studies indicated that starvation was responsible for the deaths of 62% of the dead pups that were necropsied. Unfortunately local fisheries target some of the same species that Sea Lions predominantly feed upon. This competition for resources is an issue, particularly with females whose feeding ranges are restricted while their pups are young. At the current rate of Sea Lion decrease around the Auckland and Campbell Islands, there is genuine concern for the future of this beleaguered population.

Sea lion pups
Sea lion pups

Suzanne Burns 2015. Photo credits: Shaun Templeton.

Source: Green Global Travel

Peanut Head

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Plumper exhaling in the setting sunlight.
Plumper exhaling in the setting sunlight.

As the two orca brothers slipped quietly past us, their enormous shiny fins cut through the water like daggers. They had been weaving their way through the Strait for the past half hour and while Kaikash moved with ease and grace, his older brother Plumper was laboured in his movements. He struggled to remain at the surface and his breathing was strained and stressed.

Word in the area was that Plumper was dying. Seeing such a magnificent, big, bold creature, wheeze and struggle in his watery abode moved us all. There was nothing anyone could do except keep an eye out for him and his brother and hope and pray that somehow he would come right.

It was obvious from Plumper’s breathing that he was in trouble, but there was another more subtle sign that most people would never have noticed. Certain scientists, conservationists and locals knew he was starving to death, but how? Poor Plumper was suffering from a condition called ‘Peanut Head’.

A healthy, well fed orca in essence doesn’t have a discernible neck. Their head runs in a smooth line to their back, giving the appearance of a streamlined, glossy surface. If this creature due to illness or lack of food begins to starve, they lose weight around their head and a groove forms in the area where a neck would be on other creatures. This shrunken head and this notch in their ‘neck’ region gives them the unusual title of ‘Peanut Head’.

Plumper exhaling in the sunset
Plumper exhaling in the sunset

Some years earlier, there had been three of these brothers, or the three amigos as they were called. Plumper, Kaikash and their other brother Cracroft were an indomitable force and regularly seen together. Their mother Sophia had died in 1997 leaving the males to fend for themselves. In orca society, males stay with their mothers till death and some don’t thrive after her passing. The alliance forged between these three after Sophia’s death endured and the brothers were always seen together. They were even adopted for a time by a matriarch called Scimitar who had lost two of her own sons. Cracroft was the oldest of the three and was last seen alive in the Spring of 2010.

In the Spring and Summer of 2014, numerous sightings of Kaikash and Plumper around Johnstone Strait indicated that Plumper’s health was faltering. One of the last evenings out on the water for the season and Plumper was swimming ahead of us, silhouetted by the brilliant sunshine casting an ethereal glow on his back. As he exhaled, the mist that emanated from his body formed golden droplets that glittered and dazzled us. I took a photo of him in this cascade of light and this was when I first saw that mortal sign on his neck. The sun perfectly illuminated the depression beneath his head, an ominous sign of his failing health.

My last sighting of Plumper
My last sighting of Plumper

This was the last time that I saw Plumper alive. Within a couple of weeks he was missing, presumed dead. He was never seen again. Around the same week that I had seen him, researchers from NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) and Vancouver Aquarium filmed orcas using a hexacopter drone. The research aimed to determine if salmon fisheries were impacting orca populations. Their pioneering research was establishing the body condition of the orcas in the area. Ascertaining the size of an orca from a boat is problematic as it is hard to see their bodies completely. However to view an orca from the sky is a different matter. The researchers were able to see clearly if certain individuals were thriving or declining. Footage of Plumper from the drone indicated that he was very skinny.

They were also able to see if any females were pregnant. Armed with this vital information, the scientists were able to foresee population growth and decline and pinpoint problematic areas. If an orca is starving, this can potentially illustrate an issue with declining fish stocks. With knock on effects of fish declines affecting orcas, new legislation and protective measures can be brought in to help these creatures.

Suzanne Burns, 2015.

Source: World whale tales

How I fell in love with wild and wonderful New Zealand

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The wind whipped through me and wailed in my ear, heralding the oncoming winter. As I walked through the city, slightly cowed by the wind I noticed an odd sight. Lots of young people, most likely third-level students, were walking around in t-shirts, shorts and flip flops, seemingly oblivious to the bitter cold. I walked past them baffled and slightly bemused and wondered why on earth they would punish their bodies this way?

I moved to New Zealand in 2005 and settled in to life in a picturesque university city called Dunedin on the lower end of the South Island. I chose this as my home as I was easily able to pick up work in my field, as a zoological researcher and later as a wildlife guide. The fact that it was surrounded by golden sandy beaches, prolific wildlife and a vibrant student atmosphere didn’t hurt either. Dunedin prides itself on its excellent university and the fact that it is the sea bird capital of the world.

Northern Royal albatross-Suzanne Burns
Northern Royal albatross-Suzanne Burns

You can drive 40 minutes from the city and see penguins and albatrosses at the end of the peninsula. When it comes to our feathered friends, there is something to be said for the birds in Dunedin. These albatrosses are huge, 10 feet from wing tip to tip (that is almost two people lying end to end). If you drive up to their nesting grounds at Taiaroa Head on a windy evening, you can watch these enormous avians eclipse the sun as they wheel around in glorious synchronicity.

And then there are the yellow eyed penguins. Not only are they extremely anti-social (they have only eyes for their mate), they are forest dwelling and also one of the world’s rarest penguins. New Zealand has lost so much forest in recent times, which has been a predicament for these birds as they need forest shelter for protection and nesting habitat.

The wildlife company I guided for had come to a financial agreement with a local farmer to long term lease a part of the farm. They had spent the past 20 years replanting habitat and trapping and shooting predators that would kill this rare bird.

These penguins live in the same paddocks as the sheep. So when the penguins leave the water in the evening and are walking up the hill back to their nests, they routinely pass their sheep neighbours en route. It never ceases to make me laugh seeing an awkward tuxedo clad penguin jumping up a hill while a sheep watches nervously for the stab of a sharp beak. If you want to get that perfect Easter shot forget about bunnies and chicks, penguins and sheep is where it’s at.

Yellow eyed penguin with begging chick behind-Shaun Templeton
Yellow eyed penguin with begging chick behind-Shaun Templeton

The university students provided a whole other form of wildlife and regular entertainment for all us blow ins. One of the great misconceptions is that New Zealand has decent weather and summer clothes are the norm. North of Auckland this is true, but Dunedin has a very cold climate at times due to the Sub Antarctic influence and the bracing winds that scream through the city intermittently. More confusing is when you see students walking around in this bone chilling weather in their summer attire.
The reason behind this supposedly crazy behaviour has a touch of (possibly misguided) pragmatism to it. Dunedin was settled by predominantly puritanical, tough Scots in the mid 1800s. They burnt and felled large tracts of forest on their arrival, converting much of it into pasture land. They also brought over their own cattle, pets and imported possums from Australia to start a fur trade.

Yellow eyed penguin and sheep-Shaun Templeton
Yellow eyed penguin and sheep-Shaun Templeton

They built basic houses from the wood they felled. Despite the fact that over 100 years have passed, many of these houses have not been improved upon. Most student dwellings have no insulation, double glazing or central heating. The houses get so cold in winter that it is not unusual to wake with a layer of ice on the inner window frame and an ice cream headache to boot. In order to cope with the harsh living conditions, the students try to ”harden up” their bodies to deal with their digs.

Dunedin peninsula beach at sunset-Shaun Templeton
Dunedin peninsula beach at sunset-Shaun Templeton

A long established tradition and rite of passage for the first year or “Fresher” students involves couch burning. They raid skips for abandoned couches or buy them cheaply from charity shops. The fire brigade is kept very well occupied the first week of university when the students light these couches en masse in their front gardens.

It is these things, and the many more weird, wild and wonderful aspects to living in New Zealand which have made me fall so hopelessly in love with the country.

Yellow eyed penguin heading home-Shaun Templeton
Yellow eyed penguin heading home-Shaun Templeton

Source: Irish Times

Playful Orcas and Hungry Humpbacks

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‘A virtual feast for your eyeballs!’ is what Captain Wayne exclaimed today and boy was it?!

Our resident orcas and humpbacks provided us with mind blowing experiences on both our morning and afternoon trips. Clear weather gave us lovely views of the orcas this morning. A30’s and A42’S babies were playing in Johnstone Strait . The excited whales spy hopped and tail slapped to our delight. The A23’s and A25’s were also seen transiting the area.

Orca spyhopping
Orca spyhopping

The weather and the animals changed as we approached Bold Head. The mist rolled in and we began to see some bait balls ahead of us. Humpbacks could be seen in the gloom lunge feeding. A couple of the whales hit the bait ball simultaneously. We recognized two of them as Ripple feeding with her calf. In the distance we could hear another whale trumpeting and the thunder clap of a breaching whale.

Humpback whale, mouth agape feeding
Humpback whale, mouth agape feeding

The charismatic Steller sea lions were seen swimming in the kelp. Six of them eyed us as we passed by and gave us a gruff salutation as we continued on our way. It was great to see so many different species of babies this morning and we were lucky to see a Dall’s porpoise with her wee one as we went towards Telegraph Cove.

More spyhopping!
More spyhopping!

This afternoon we cruised out to Blackfish Sound. A couple of humpbacks swam off to our port side and descended rapidly to their watery lair. As we passed through Blackfish Sound the A30’s reappeared ahead of us. Whether they were fishing or simply goofing around, we spent the next half hour enthralled with this phenomenal family. The whales sped through the water, tail lobbing and spy hopping. Occasionally they would rest in a line before something would fire them up again and more high jInks would occur.

Blackney, large male orca powering after us.
Blackney, large male orca powering after us.

We were sated from our encounters with the orca but thought it would be even more fun to go and see if some more humpbacks were about. Our wish came true faster than anticipated with six humpbacks surrounding us on all sides! Ripple and her calf were feeding in a bait ball and in the distance there were signs of more activity. A large flock of birds drew us further along and in the milieu we realized a feeding frenzy was rapidly unfolding. Not one, not two, but five humpbacks were vying for space in this glut of food. The whales lunged at the fish and over each other in their attempts to gulp down as much fishy goodness as possible.

Birds awaiting the bounty this humpback draws to the surface.
Birds awaiting the bounty this humpback draws to the surface.

The whales appeared to be frustrated with their neighbours and some trumpeted and exhaled forcefully while pushing past. One whale made an even stranger sound which almost was akin to a snarl. We were ecstatic to see these gargantuan gluttons feasting on the fish.

Yahtsee, humpback whale forcefully tail slapping.
Yahtsee, humpback whale forcefully tail slapping.

We left the whales to their banquet and started towards home. In the distance a lone humpback was doing some spectacular tail lobbing in rapid succession. The whale did vertical tail lobs over 20 times and smashed the water forcefully on each attempt. We watched awestruck as it made mincemeat of the water around it. This forceful fluker was identified as Yahtsee by our staff and guests together.

Our eyeballs were well stuffed on our way home!

Source: Stubbs Island