Hope Harbour
Hope Harbour is an inlet at the north-west of West Falkland in the Falkland Islands of the South Atlantic Ocean at 51°21′13″S 60°38′30″W / 51.35361°S 60.64167°W.[1] About 4 kilometres (2 mi) long and 1.3 kilometres (1 mi) wide, it is sheltered by the promontory of Grave Cove Camp in the south, a narrow ridge terminating in Hope Point to the north,[2] Bramble Point Camp to the east, and West Point Island at its entrance to the west.[3] Carcass Island lies 8 kilometres (5 mi) north-east of Hope Point.[4] The water in the harbour is around 4 fathoms (7.3 m) deep,[5] and a small stream feeds the head of the harbour (at the eastern end) which has attracted mullet.[6]
Important Bird Area
[edit]The inlet and its surrounds have been identified by BirdLife International as an Important Bird Area (IBA) under the code FK)19.[7] Birds for which the site is of conservation significance include Falkland steamer ducks, ruddy-headed geese, gentoo penguins, western rockhopper penguins, Magellanic penguins, black-browed albatrosses, and white-bridled finches.[2] Upland geese and long-tailed meadowlarks have been recorded.[8] The area has been overgrazed in the past, with little remaining tussac cover, and suffering from soil erosion, whilst the albatrosses nesting sites on the cliffs are threatened from cliff erosion.[8] The gentoo penguins at Hope Harbour suffer from predation by skuas, which take the young chicks, striated caracara which take eggs, and sea lions which will take adults or chicks alike.[9]
In the 1920s, phoenicopterus chilensis (Chilean flamingos) were spotted in the harbour,[10][11] and although an occasional visitor, sightings of cattle egrets increased in the 1980s.[12]
References
[edit]- ^ "Hope Harbour". www.geonames.org. Retrieved 9 May 2026.
- ^ a b "Hope Harbour, West Falkland". datazone.birdlife.org. Retrieved 9 May 2026.
- ^ South America pilot. London: Admiralty Office. 1848. p. 108. OCLC 81368432.
- ^ "Carcass Island" (PDF). www.falklandislands.com. Retrieved 10 May 2026.
- ^ King, Philip Parker (1832). Sailing directions for the coasts of Eastern and Western Patagonia. London: Hydrographical Office. p. 38.
- ^ Valentine, Mrs; Cotton, A. D. (1915). Cryptogams from the Falkland Islands collected. Linnean. p. 142.
- ^ "Insights into the science and economics of Falkland Islands proposed marine managed areas (MMAs)" (PDF). www.south-atlantic-research.org. p. 154. Retrieved 4 May 2026.
- ^ a b "Hope Harbour, West Falkland (20870) Falkland Islands (Malvinas), South America". www.keybiodiversityareas.org. Retrieved 9 May 2026.
- ^ De Roy, Tui (2022). Penguins: the ultimate guide (2 ed.). Princeton, New Jersey: Princeton University Press. p. 63. ISBN 978-0-691-23358-1.
- ^ Boyson, V. F. (1924). The Falkland Islands. Oxford: Clarendon Press. p. 313. OCLC 1999198.
- ^ Woods, Robin W. (1975). The birds of the Falkland Islands. Oswestry, Shropshire: Nelson. p. 217. ISBN 090461400X.
- ^ Douse, Andy (1985). "The 1986 cattle egret 'invasion'". The Warrah (Annual Report). Falklands Conservation: 10. ISSN 1357-9460.