12th January 2008 - Ushuaia
Time 21:13, 54 degrees 53.51' South, 67 degrees 50.50' West, Air Temperature 17 oC, Water Temperature 9.3 0C, Wind Northwest force 2-3, Sunrise 6.16am, Sunset 11.07pm


Lupins grow well in many gardens in Ushuaia and look stunning.

Spent the day in and around Ushuaia. I took one of the catamaran tours of the small islands in the Beagle channel, close to Ushuaia. The catamaran was a new boat with all the mod cons. I was lucky to get a spot at the bow of one of the catamaran hulls so had a first class view. The islands are within 15 minutes by boat from Ushuaia. They are low lying rocks and attract a number of seabirds as well as Sea Lions to roost and breed on them. The catamaran was able to go within about 30 feet (9 metres) of the islands so close views were the order of the day.


Sea Lions, Imperial Cormorants and Ushuaia in the background.

The seabird colonies, while not huge were very impressive and I got a chance to see species up close that had evaded me up to now. My only concern was that by the tie we were starting to head back to Ushuaia there were up to four tour boats nudging up to these islands. I wonder if there are any regulation relating to the number of tour operators that can approach these breeding colonies without harming them and if any monitoring of the colonies is being carried out to ensure that the wild life does not suffer. If it did it would be bad news for Ushuaia and the wildlife. In the afternoon I took a stroll around what looks like a brackish man-made lagoon on the south side of town and I hopefully got some nice film of Southern Lapwing, Baird's Sandpiper and Crested Duck. Bye for now and a big thanks to Tom Sharpe for guiding us through the geology of Antarctica! PS If you have already read yesterdays blog you might want to know that Tom Sharpe as added to his contribution about the geology of Cape Horn and Tierra del Fuego.


Southern Lapwing.


Baird's Sandpiper.


Brown-hooded Gull.


Crested Duck. Penguinus giganticus in Ushuaia today.

Wildlife seen around Ushuaia

Mammals
South American Sea Lions 50+

Birds
Giant Petrel 3
Black-browed Albatross 1
Imperial Shag 400+
Rock Shag 40+
Black-crowned Night Heron 1
Kelp Goose 2
Upland Goose 4 (and goslings)
Flying Steamer Duck 2
Crested Duck 100 + (some with ducklings)
Chimango Caracara 4
Southern Lapwing 8
Baird’s Sandpiper 9
Chilean Skua 12+
Kelp Gull 60+
Dolphin Gull 40+
Brown-hooded Gull 11
South American Tern 150+
Dark-bellied Cinclodes 1
Austral Negrito 1
Chilean Swallow 15+
Rufous-collared Sparrow 7
House Sparrow 50+
Black-chinned Siskin 3

Note: A + sign after the counts indicates that we saw at least that number but more may have been present.