It was quite the bumpy overnight ride on the ship, and I regularly found myself awake as the ship crashed through the waves, so I wasn’t in much of a rush to wake up in the morning, instead waiting for the morning announcement before getting out of bed. That was around 07:00, and after that and a short breakfast we commenced with the days agenda.
The morning would be spent visiting the aptly named Barren Island on the south side of the Falklands. This was an island not visited by even most of the staff, so it was exciting to explore. On the seabird front the highlights were breeding Gentoo Penguins and a few Magellanic Penguins as well, plus Southern Giant Petrels, which were also enjoying feeding on a dead and well-rotten Sei Whale that had washed up in the harbour.
On the island itself there were a few nice birds to hunt for. Cobbs Wren was a possibility here but we never found one. The Blackish Cincloides was very common, and very tame, allowing for enhanced views after yesterdays briefer encounter. The White-bridled Finch was common here, although not particularly confiding it has to be noted. Only at the end was able to get close enough for good shots. And there were several confiding Two-banded Plovers, allowing for my best views of the species.
In addition to the birds there was also a small colony of South American Sea Lions, and on the beach were our first Southern Elephant Seals, although they did not do a great deal while we were there. Obviously the birds took priority but these were still nice to see. We returned to the main ship around midday and took our lunch and a short break before heading out for the afternoon.
Our afternoon destination was the very close George Island, a private sheep farm that we were lucky to have been able to arrange access to. This island also had Cobbs Wren, with a pair apparently nesting at the farmhouse, and so that became the afternoon priority. Despite this, it still took a good 40 minutes to find an individual around the farmhouse, and the bird could not be approached due to the high interest it generated among punters. Fortunately, we were also able to explore an area of tussock and in here there was another Cobbs Wren that showed fantastically well.
With the wren now seen, my only outstanding species for the Falklands for the Rufous-chested Dotterel, and on the wild terrain of George Island we managed to find two, although always distant. The birding here was very enjoyable, with only a handful of Magellanic Penguins but plenty of the Falkland races of terrestrial species, including more confiding Tussockbirds, and offshore there was a nice group of four White-tufted Grebes.
At night we sailed around the south side of the Falklands to reach the port of Stanley in the morning. This route took us past Sealion Island which apparently has a resident pod of Orca but sadly we did not encounter them. It was not a complete loss on the cetacean front however, as we did see two distant Sei Whales, identifiable by their obvious fin. A very pleasant way to end an excellent day.
