Staff Update

For all of those who are regular to the island you will be sad to hear that Olave (our second chef) and Maurina have left the island this month. They had worked on the island for almost seven years with a bit of a gap somewhere in between. Like Cecile they have decided that they would like to spend more time with family on La Digue, particularly their daughter and we wish them both all the best in their future path. They will be missed by the staff and clients alike.

Sooty Terns

Well in the last couple of weeks the Sooty Terns have started to come in over the north point of the island. They arrive around dusk in ever increasing numbers each night and fly over the colony area. They are not landing yet but simply flying up high on the thermal currents above the island. As they gather in larger numbers they will start to land in the early hours of the morning on the ground and will depart just before dawn. It will be at least another few weeks however until they start to settle in the colony but in the meantime they will simply gather every evening in larger numbers, creating the amazing spectacle that regulars of Bird Island are used to seeing prior to their mass descent onto the ground. It is so comforting in a way to hear their distinctive call as the odd one passes by the lodge. I can't wait for them all to arrive and start their nesting as it really gives the island a wonderful sense of purpose in the big picture of nature migration.

Weather
 

As in 2006 we experienced an incredibly dry month of February. In fact this year we only measured 0.6 mm of rainfall in total compared to a slightly higher 14.7mm last year. The runway turned very quickly from a healthy lush green to a brown, dry, crunchy cornflake texture! Considering the rainfall that we had received prior to this it came as a bit of a shock. We have had to water the plants and ensure that the tortoise ponds are filled every day. Now it is just a matter of doing a few rain dances and hoping that we get a little rain before the true dry period starts!

Ecotourism

With the ever growing trend these days of ecotourism we are trying hard to get recognized by organisations for the work that we do on Bird Island alongside our hotel operation. We are also keen to forge links with tour operators who sell destinations purely based on their environmental and ethical credentials. This is why we are very happy to say that this month we have teamed up with the French Ecotourism Association who's goal is to link the best ecotour operators and ecolodges in the world for tourists to browse for holidays on their website.