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The RSPB and Tristan Government are undertaking an ambitious programme of conservation action to restore Gough Island by eradicating the invasive non-native mice that are killing the island's unique seabirds. |  |
Gough project team members return home by sea and air
Reports from Fiona Kilpatrick on Tristan and Sean Burns on Ascension Island
Bringing home members of the Gough Restoration Programme Team from the island after the 2020 project was cancelled by the RSPB in March due to coronavirus pandemic fears has proved a logistical challenge due to the strict lockdown arrangements imposed in South Africa.
Five members of the team who lived in South Africa were picked up by the Ovenstone fishing vessel MFV Geo Searcher on 5th April 2020. The ship arrived at Cape Town on Easter Sunday 12th April, but was not allowed to dock until the following Thursday 16th April and passengers had to remain on board for a further period of quarantine and were expected to be allowed ashore on Tuesday 28th April.
Chris Jones' photo shows the Evohe at anchor off Gough Island on Friday 28th February 2020.
Meanwhile, another eight team members were picked up by the sailing yacht Evohe, which had been used to transport thirteen team members from Cape to Gough in February 2020. As these people needed to return to the UK, the yacht headed north and transported the group all the way to Ascension Island where they arrived on Tuesday 21st April. As they had spent so long at sea they were given clearance to come ashore the same day and spent five nights in guest house accommodation. They departed on the RAF flight on the morning of Sunday 26th April along with other Ascension-based people who needed to return to the UK and elsewhere. Ascension Island Administrator Sean Burns added that 'We are very grateful to the RAF for their help repatriating the team to the UK'.
Of the Gough Restoration Project Team members assembled on the island in February 2020, only the three RSPB Field Biologists Michelle Risi, Christopher Jones and Alexis Osborne remain to over-winter ready for the scheduled annual arrival of SA Agulhas II in September, which will presumably go ahead.
Photo taken at Ascension Island's Wideawake Airport on Sunday 26th April shows Ascension Island Administrator Sean Burns (far left) with the eight members of the Gough Restoration Project Team, Marina Burns (5th from left) Head of Administrator's Office, Xander Halliwell, (just under the tail of the aircraft at the back) and alongside Marina Wing Commander John Kane (Base Commander).
Scene at Wideawake Airport on 26th April showing the RAF plane preparing to take off for its flight to the UK.
Ascension photos from Xander Halliwell.
Note on Sean Burns
Sean Burns is Tristan da Cunha's longest-serving Administrator after completing 6 years and 5 months over two terms on the island. Sean arrived in September 2010 to serve a first term dominated by the MS Oliva wreck on Nightingale Island in March 2011. He departed in October 2013 to serve as Deputy, and later Acting Governor, on St Helena. Sean returned to Tristan da Cunha for a welcome second term in November 2016. Sean took up a third South Atlantic post when he became Administrator of Ascension Island in March 2020. It is significant to be able to record how joined-up the UK Overseas Territory of St Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha is during 2020.
Gough Restoration Project postponed due to coronavirus fears
RSPB statement confirms delay for Gough Island Restoration Programme
Embryo Team on Gough to return home later in the year following their preparations for the programme
Update from RSPB's Martin Harper
The RSPB have been doing a lot of contingency planning in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. This is to make sure that as much of the RSPB's work keeps going as possible. That is the aim, but we also must be practical and ensure staff safety and project feasibility. It will sometimes involve making some tough decisions.
One area of work where we have had to make an incredibly difficult but essential decision is with our Gough Island Restoration Programme. Given the rapidly evolving COVID-19 pandemic and the increasing travel restrictions, it has clearly become impossible to complete the operation this season.
The decision to postpone was not easy but it is the right one. The amazing team behind the work are understandably hugely disappointed after the massive effort and hard work that has got us to this point. However, given the circumstances it has become logistically impossible, and contrary to government guidance, for our specialist team to travel to South Africa and onto Gough during the pandemic. We know that after all the years of planning that the project could save two million seabirds each year and prevent the extinction of a number of species. But we only have one shot, and to get it right in such a remote place and at such a scale, all the stars must be aligned. And for this year they are not.
Chris Jones' photo shows the yacht Evohe at anchor off Gough Island on 28th February 2020.
The vessel carried the first tranche of the main Gough Restoration Project Team to join the three RSPB Field Biologists Michelle Risi, Christopher Jones and Alexis Osborne who were already on the island.
We are committed in our mission to restore Gough to the seabird paradise it once was. A great many people and organisations have joined and helped us on this project, and we owe it to them as well as to our ourselves to make sure that we give ourselves the best chance of success. We also owe it to our funders and all the people who have generously donated to the project to do the same.
The team on the island have already made great inroads on the initial project set up. This progress will stand us in good stead for next year. We now need to concentrate on getting our people back home safely and planning for the return visit.
Everyone we have spoken to has expressed sympathy and support for the decision, including our key partners: Tristan da Cunha, the UK Government, South African Department of Environment, Forestry and Fisheries, BirdLife South Africa, Island Conservation, BirdLife International and the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland.
We were pleased that Defra Minister for Biosecurity Lord Gardiner said today:
"This ambitious RSPB project plays a big role in saving the critically endangered Tristan albatross and Gough bunting on the island. The government will continue to invest and work with partners to support local communities and defend the unique biodiversity of the Overseas Territories. We look forward to the valuable work of this programme resuming as soon as it is safe to do so."
Thanks also to all of you for your continued support. Be assured that all the donations already received (and more) will be needed by the project in preparing for our return.
This is a partnership endeavour and it will be through the strength of the partnership that we shall find the collective resolve to see the job through for the precious wildlife of Gough Island.
RSPB poster showcasing all of the bird species on Gough. If successful, the project will benefit up to 19 of these species.
Gough Restoration Project Update
Updated excerpts from RSPB Laura Beasley’s article published in the February Tristan da Cunha Newsletter
For the full article please join the Tristan da Cunha Association to receive your copy and other in-depth features on the island which are not published on the website.
Gough Island Restoration 2020
The RSPB-led £9.1m project which aims to eradicate mice from Gough Island has started. This will be the RSPB’s largest ever single undertaking, and one of the most ambitious island restorations ever attempted by anyone anywhere in the world.
Chris Jones' photo shows Gough Island from the SA Agulhas II helicopter in September 2019
The Gough Restoration Project Plan
The scale and complexity of the operation is immense: Moving four helicopters, hundreds of tonnes of equipment, and 40 extra staff to this remote, windswept location, thousands of miles from the UK.
The first operational team of 13 travelled from Cape Town aboard the expedition sailing vessel Evohe and arrived at Gough Island on 28th February to set up infrastructure and aviculture. Another group will travel out on a second trip on the Evohe in March. The combine dteam will build aviaries for the land birds, along with a helicopter hangar and the extra housing and facilities required for the restoration team.
SA Agulhas II will depart from Cape Town in May with additional team members, equipment, stores and the helicopters.
The operation and the teams will be led overall by Pete McClelland, the Gough Island Restoration Operational Manager. Pete comes from New Zealand, where island restoration techniques have been refined over the last 50 or so years, a country known for its expertise in this field. Pete brings a wealth of experience to the project and has been a pivotal part of the successful Macquarie, Lord Howe, Big Green, and Rat Island restorations. A terrestrial and fisheries observer from Tristan will be present on the island between May-August 2020.
Rodenticide bait will be dropped from helicopters between June and August 2020 as this is when there is less alternative food available for mice and the greatest number of seabirds are away from the island foraging at sea. A GPS system will ensure accurate and even bait placement across the island. We’ve carefully considered the risks involved in the operation, and as a precaution we will be taking a number of Gough moorhens and Gough buntings into temporary captivity on the island so that they can stay safely out of the way until the operation is complete. They’ll be looked after by a highly experienced aviculture team.
Demobilisation will begin in August with personnel leaving the island on the Agulhas II. An RSPB team will remain on Gough for at least two years for any signs of mice before declaring Gough officially “mouse free”.
There will also be continued monitoring of the welfare and breeding success of the seabirds. In the absence of mice, an immediate improvement in breeding success is expected across several bird species.
RSPB poster showcasing all of the bird species on Gough. If successful, the project will benefit up to 19 of these species.
Funding
The success of this operation cannot be guaranteed. But we cannot stand by and do nothing, and urgently need to raise money to cover costs as there is a significant shortfall.
If you can contribute to this vital seabird project please visit www.goughisland.com or contact the team at GoughIsland@rspb.org.uk
It is a case of now or never.
With RSPB the project partners are – Tristan da Cunha Government, the UK Government, the South African Department of Environment, Forestry and Fisheries, BirdLife South Africa, BirdLife International, Island Conservation, and the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland.
Thanks to the generosity of RSPB supporters, the UK Government, philanthropic individuals and foundations, and other project funders, the project will go ahead, but this commitment has pushed the limits of the RSPB’s funds and therefore, the fund-raising continues urgently to cover the cost of the shortfall.
Gough Restoration Team arrives at the island |
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| Yacht Evohe trip gets the 2020 project properly underway 8-Mar-2020 |
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FOTBOT raises money for Gough Island Restoration |
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| Friends of the British Overseas Territories' main 2019/2020 fundraising campaign 10-Dec-2019 |
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2020 Gough Project in the Spotlight |
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| RSPB event showcases Gough Island mice eradication plan 1-Nov-2019 |
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First evidence of mouse attacks on Gough adult albatrosses |
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| Paper published following 2018 fieldwork 9-Jan-2019 |
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Two million seabirds killed annually by mice on Gough Island |
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| 2018 research provides further evidence to support Gough Restoration Programme 23-Oct-2018 |
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Web Pages Launched for the Gough Island Restoration Programme |
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| The RSPB recently launched a website outlining its role in the Gough Island Restoration Programme. 23-Sep-2018 |
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