Paulet Island (PAUL)
63˚35’S, 55˚47’W Magnetic declination: 11.0˚E Inventory subarea: NE Inventory acronym: PAUL Location — History — Features A circular island, about 1.0 mile in diameter, lying 3 miles SE of Dundee Island, off the NE end of the Antarctic Peninsula. Paulet is the site of an enormous Adélie penguin colony. The island was discovered by Ross’s British expedition (1839-43), and named by Ross for a captain in the Royal Navy. Paulet consists of a distinct volcanic cone, 1,158 feet high. The landing beach on the N side of the island contains rounded, mainly spherical boulders and pebbles of basalt and scoriae. Well to the E of the landing beach is a memorial cross marking the grave of one of the members of the Nordenskjøld expedition who died here, and the remains of the hut in which these explorers overwintered may be found above the landing beach. Beyond and above the hut is a substantial ovoid-shaped lake, several hundred feet long and about half that width, which appears to be in the crater of the old volcano. The ridge above the landing (upon which the remains of the hut are located) is made up entirely of rounded boulders, pebbles, and even bomb-shaped fragments. This ridge slopes up gently to a steeper hillside leading around the lake. There are many Adélies around the lake and on the elevated ridge between the lake and a basaltic stack NE of the landing beach. This stack contains sheathbill and shag nests, and sits opposite a large shag colony that covers a steep ridge on an interior hillside. Beyond this rock stack is a flat terrace that forms an apron around the N and NE side of the island. Enormous numbers of Adélies nest on this apron and on the ridges above. The ground surface consists of cinders and pebbles in a muddy, guano-rich soil. The steep ridge that houses the large shag colony is underlain by solid basalt. Angular slabs of thin cryoturbated (broken and churned by freezing and thawing) basalt are common, and were used by the Nordenskjøld expedition members to build their emergency hut. On site is an Antarctic Historic Site and Monument, the stone hut built in February 1903 by C. A. Larsen, Norwegian captain of the wrecked vessel Antarctic of the Swedish Antarctic Expedition, led by Otto Nordenskjøld, and the grave of a member of that expedition. This small island in the W Weddell Sea is normally the home to at least 60,000 breeding pairs of Adélie penguins. It is also the site of an historical hut and burial marker from the ill-fated Nordenskjøld expedition. The landing site is on the N central side of the island, and access is often impeded by ice. Anchoring is generally impossible because of the fast flowing ice and currents. Leopard seals often may be found offshore of the landing site. In normal circumstances, Paulet presents a very major challenge: the Adélies are tightly grouped and often difficult to access, especially when the beach is caked with ice, or later in the breeding season, when penguin chicks break crèche and move to the beach. In the 1994-95 austral summer, Paulet experienced a site-wide Adélie breeding crash, with many dead chicks strewn about and relatively small numbers of undersized chicks gasping for food. Normally, in mid-summer, this site is awash in chicks, guano, and mud. In the 1994-95 season, blue-eyed shags also failed. The causes for the abject breeding failures are unclear, although suspicions suggest krill stock fluctuations in the penguins’ and shags’ normal foraging areas or, because of a “high ice” winter, the penguins and shags found Paulet difficult to reach and were much delayed in starting their breeding cycle. Landing Characteristics Uncharted water near shore. Cobble landing beach on N coast may be packed with ice, depending on wind and swell. More visitor space on a low or falling tide; otherwise, space is very restricted. Landing beach difficult to negotiate when snow- or ice-covered or wet, and especially in January after Adélie penguin chicks break crèche and move seaward. Access inland is uphill and immediately places visitors in close proximity to nesting penguins. Late in the season, Antarctic fur seals may be present, and in large numbers. Historic Nordenskjøld expedition hut located inland above the landing beach, with an ovoid-shaped melt lake beyond and S of the hut. Antarctic Site Inventory Effort Visits by Antarctic Site Inventory researchers, 1994-2003: 1. January 22, 1995 RN Explorer 2. November 30, 1995 RN LB Explorer 3. December 9, 1995 BH W. Discoverer 4. January 16, 1996 RN BH Endurance 5. January 31, 1996 RN BH Endurance 6. November 27, 1996 RN WT Explorer 7. December 1, 1996 RN W. Discoverer 8. December 31, 1996 LB Hanseatic 9. January 21, 1999 RN RD ST Vavilov 10. November 25, 1999 LB BP Cal Star 11. December 14, 1999 RN Cal Star 12. January 21, 2000 RN Shuleykin 13. December 11, 2000 RN Cal Star 14. December 25, 2000 SF LF Cal Star 15. January 9, 2001 SF Cal Star 16. January 26, 2001 RD Cal Star 17. February 2, 2001 RN Cal Star 18. December 11, 2001 RN SF CE Endeavour 19. December 21, 2001 JC LGC Endeavour 20. January 25, 2002 RD LS Endeavour 21. February 3, 2002 MM Endeavour 22. February 20, 2002 RN Endeavour 23. January 10, 2003 SF Endeavour 24. January 20, 2003 RD Endeavour 25. February 1, 2003 MM Endeavour 26. February 16, 2003 MB Endeavour Assessment and monitoring . The Inventory undertakes regular censusing of blue-eyed shags and specific Adélie penguin groups. Fauna — Flora — Censuses Penguins & flying birds. Adélie penguins, blue-eyed shags, kelp gulls, and snowy sheathbills are confirmed breeders. Both snow and Wilson’s storm-petrels commonly course the higher scree and are strongly suspected to be breeding. There is a noticeable paucity of skuas, spp.; none were found nesting and very few were observed harassing penguins. Kelp gulls also observed but it is unclear whether they actually nest on site. Recent Adélie penguin census data reported in Woehler (1993): 60,000 A3, 1984. Antarctic Site Inventory censuses: Adélie penguin (“hut” colony) 216 C1 1995 Jan 502 N1 1995 Nov 447 N1 1995 Dec 559 N1 1996 Nov 609 N1 1999 Nov 458 C1 2000 Jan 522 N1 2000 Dec 472 C1 2001 Jan 373 N1 2001 Dec 252 C1 2002 Jan 238 C1 2002 Feb 573 C1 2003 Jan Adélie penguin (large colony contiguous to landing site, Nordenskjøld hut) 75,000 N2 1999 Jan Adélie penguin (NE canyons, far removed from landing site area) 20,000-30,000 N3 1999 Jan Adélie penguin (site-wide estimate) 95,000-105,000 N2/3 1999 Jan Blue-eyed shag 432 N1 1995 Nov 326 N1 1996 Nov 360 N1 1996 Dec 377 N2 1999 Nov 291 N1 2000 Dec 265 C1 2001 Jan 297 N1 2001 Dec 273 N1 2003 Jan 524 C1 2003 Jan Seals. Weddell seals and Antarctic fur seals have hauled-out on the landing beach, and leopard seals often may be found hunting offshore. Flora. Xanthoria , spp. may be found on exposed slopes. Conservation Aspects Site sensitivities. Adélie penguins nest in large numbers and large, tightly packed colonies immediately above and uphill of the landing beach, on slightly elevated terraces surrounding the entire N coast, and on inland slopes and ridges; they are easily approached and disturbed, especially in November and early December when adults will be incubating eggs; subsequently, adults will be guarding and provisioning chicks at the nest, then in crèche. Adélie penguins also nest in steep, rubble-strewn canyons on far NE end of the island; they are not readily accessed, but are easily disturbed. Blue-eyed shags nesting on a basaltic, shoreline stack E of the landing beach and in a large, cliffside colony opposite this stack are easily approached and disturbed; in November and early December adults will be incubating eggs and, subsequently, guarding and provisioning chicks. Snowy sheathbills also nest on this basaltic, shoreline stack, and are easily approached and disturbed. Snow petrels and Wilson’s storm-petrels nest in loose scree on steep slopes inland and W of the landing beach. As the penguin breeding season winds down, Antarctic fur seals begin to arrive, crowding onto beaches and elevated terraces. Pointers for avoiding disruptions.
Visitation Aspects Numbers of tourist zodiac landings and participating visitors, 1989-2003:
Proximate visitor sites . D’Urville Monument may be found to the NW at Joinville Island. Jonassen Island and Brown Bluff lie to the W, Seymour and Snow Hill Islands to the SW. |
