PITCAIRN, HENDERSON & TUAMOTU ISLANDS

PITCAIRN, HENDERSON & TUAMOTU ISLANDS BIRDING TOUR: DETAILED ITINERARY

Pitcairn, Henderson & Tuamotu Islands: Day 1  Our adventure begins in earnest today at Mangaréva in the remote Gambier Islands at the far eastern end of the scattered Tuamotu archipelago. The journey from Papeete is broken by a refuelling stopover at a remote atoll. As we descend over this huge atoll, so large that one cannot even see the far side, it will be brought home to us how little land there is in the Tuamotus: just thin barrier islands and numerous tiny islets (known locally as motu) projecting above the water on top of the coral reef forming the atoll and protecting a huge, impossibly turquoise lagoon. Everywhere are beaches of white sand, backed by the deep greens of coconut palms and native island ‘bush’.

Once we arrive at Mangaréva, where Pacific Golden Plovers favour the grassy edges of the runway, we will transfer by ferry from the airport island to the harbour of the main island, where our vessel, our home for the next 14 nights, will be waiting for us. During the afternoon we will set sail for the magical, largely uninhabited world of the islands that awaits us. As we head southeastwards, towards Pitcairn island, we will keep a lookout for Phoenix and Herald Petrels, Christmas Shearwater, Polynesian Storm Petrel, Great and Lesser Frigatebirds, Greater Crested Tern, and Brown and Black Noddies.

Pitcairn, Henderson & Tuamotu Islands: Days 2-14  During our two weeks we shall explore the easternmost Tuamotu Islands and the even more remote Pitcairn, Henderson and Oeno Islands. The run to Pitcairn Island will take about 36 hours, but the journey will provide some interesting seabird opportunities. In addition to some of the species likely as we left Mangaréva, we will be keeping a lookout for our first Murphy’s and Henderson’s Petrels, Tropical Shearwater (split from Audubon’s) and White-faced Storm Petrel. Even Juan Fernandez Petrel and some other wandering Pterodroma petrels are possible in these waters.

Not many travellers have the chance or the privilege of stepping ashore on rugged Pitcairn Island, so we shall join a select band as we explore this fascinating spot where the Bounty mutineers ended up. As with almost all of our landings, we will not be able to get ashore directly from our vessel, so we will use the naiads or the island longboat instead. Although Pitcairn and its dependencies are an overseas territory of the United Kingdom, the islands are effectively administered from New Zealand, itself amazingly distant. Pitcairn’s isolation is exacerbated by the lack of an airport, and there are no regular shipping connections, so visitors are a rare event! We are sure to be made most welcome and no doubt some of us will want to visit the post office in the small settlement in order to buy those sought-after Pitcairn stamps to put on the ritual postcards. Pitcairn’s single-island endemic, the Pitcairn Reed Warbler, is common on the island, so we will have no trouble finding some, and we will also be able to admire the pretty little Grey Noddy and a small colony of Masked Boobies.

As we wait for the boat to take us back to our vessel, we will be only about 100 meters from where the blazing hulk of the Bounty sank after the mutineers decided to burn her to leave no easily visible trace of their presence. As with any such tale, both sides have strong views. From the islander’s perspective Captain Bligh was a cruel tyrant who virtually compelled Fletcher Christian and his allies to mutiny, yet if that were truly the case one wonders why so many of the crew elected to join Bligh in a small open boat when the mutineers put him off the ship in the then unknown seas off Tonga, facing almost certain death. And one marvels at a man who could then save his men by a remarkable feat of seamanship, sailing that tiny boat 3700 nautical miles, all the way to Kupang in Timor, in the then Dutch East Indies.

As we sail northeast from Pitcairn Island to Henderson Island, we will encounter more and more Henderson’s Petrels, a species that only nests in this remote, uninhabited place (and which was formerly, mistakenly, considered a dark morph of Herald Petrel), and we should also come across Kermadec Petrel. We will reach the southernmost point of our voyage in the waters around Pitcairn and its dependencies, so we will be looking out for cool-water wanderers throughout the region, such as albatrosses, giant petrels, and Cape and White-chinned Petrels.

Unlike rugged Pitcairn Island, Henderson Island is a raised coral reef and so is basically a flat, thickly vegetated plateau of limestone rising 30 metres or so above sea-level. After finding our way from the beach up onto the plateau we will start looking for Henderson’s four single-island endemics. Most of the flightless crakes of the Pacific islands have long been extinct, but sheer isolation and unsuitability for human settlement have allowed the bold little Henderson Island Crake to survive. We should eventually be able to find several of these rather inquisitive little birds wandering around under the scrubby woodland, feeding in the leaf litter. Henderson Reed Warbler (split from Pitcairn) is a common species on the island, but we will probably have to work harder for good views of the stunning Stephen’s Lorikeet and the attractive Henderson Island Fruit Dove.

From Henderson we turn to the west and sail to Oeno Island, the last of the Pitcairn islands group that we will visit. Oeno is a coral atoll with a perfect ‘desert island’, covered in luxuriant vegetation and surrounded by white coral sand beaches, in the middle! The seabird colony here is truly spectacular, with breeding Murphy’s Petrels running into the thousands (the calling birds hovering over the colonies are a true marvel to behold), along with smaller numbers of Christmas Shearwaters, Great Frigatebirds, Masked and Red-footed Boobies, Red-tailed Tropicbirds, and Spectacled (or Grey-backed), Sooty and Common White (or Fairy) Terns. As with all remote and uninhabited tropical islands, the seabirds are unafraid of man, so we will be able to enjoy some extraordinary views and will feel truly privileged to be able to wander around in such a wonderful place. In particular, watching the lovely Common White Tern at such close range that one can see its ‘mascara-like’ dark eye smudge (which enhances its already huge eye, perhaps adapted for seeing in the forest interior) and the blue base to the dagger-like bill, is a real delight. Long-tailed Cuckoos (or Long-tailed Koels) from New Zealand spend the Austral winter on Pacific islands like Oeno, so we will keep a lookout for this interesting species.

Sailing now to the northwest, leaving the Pitcairn islands behind at last, we will have a full day at sea with great opportunities for a selection of Pterodroma species (including Collared and possibly Juan Fernandez Petrels) and other deepwater pelagics, including Tahiti Petrel and White-bellied Storm Petrel. We could also come across some Humpback Whales at a seamount, enjoying watching them breaching before they crash back into the ocean in spectacular fashion, sending up a huge sheet of spray.

Eventually we come to the Actaeon group of islands and in particular the island of Tenararo. This beautiful and remote uninhabited island, which is rat-free, is one of the last breeding sites for the rare and enigmatic Tuamotu Sandpiper. As we step ashore on this pristine desert island and our footprints mark the virgin white sand we will feel quite Robinson Crusoe-like! It should not take long before we find the little sandpiper, which feeds mostly along the tideline (they may run down the beach to greet us!) but also spends much time walking on the leaf litter under the tangled jungle of the island’s interior, or can even be watched walking up tree branches. When the birds display they hover and veer in the manner of Temminck’s Stint, all the while uttering their beautiful trilling call. Even better is their confiding manner (not a help with rats, sadly) and we should be able to walk right up to them without causing any concern! On Tenararo this wonderful bird remains extraordinarily common and we may see up to 100-200 individuals during our visit!

Amongst the trees and bushes on Tenararo we should easily find another Tuamotu endemic, the beautiful Atoll Fruit Dove. We will also search for the unobtrusive but dazzling little Polynesian Ground Dove, which as its name suggests spends its time on the ground. We will have to search patiently and carefully, for these birds are both slow-moving and unafraid, so they can even be spotted walking along right next to one’s feet! If we are in luck we will be able to watch the male displaying close to us, stretching out its wings to display their purple iridescence. Sadly this species has disappeared from most of its range in the Tuamotus owing to the depredations of rats. This is also a good island for seeing Bristle-thighed Curlew, a species that flies south from Alaska to the Tuamotus to winter in paradise, and Wandering Tattler.

We may have time to visit another of the Tuamotu atolls, such as Morane, but our highest priority will be to see the key endemic landbirds and pelagic seabirds well, so we will spend more time in places like Henderson in the Pitcairn islands if we need to.

Pitcairn, Henderson & Tuamotu Islands: Day 15  Our tour ends this morning at Mangareva airport.