Cambridge Sound
As we arrived in Cambridge Sound this morning we have come full circle. It is not that we have completed a circumnavigation of Franz Josef Land, but we returned to a place where we were on August 4th, shortly after our first landfall in this archipelago. We have seen and experienced much since then, but on that date, while cruising through the body of water between Alexandra Land and Prince George Land we saw a distant seabird colony on a cliff. Consultation among the naturalists concluded that it appeared to be a sizeable colony of ivory gulls, which caused much consternation and excitement for our Ornithologist Maria Gavrilo. With her knowledge of this area, and this species in particular, she could conclude that it was a previously unknown colony.
This sort of information is always of interest to researchers. Sometimes the only way to access remote regions is by the use of a vessel of opportunity such as ours. And it is also of interest to Expedition Leaders, who will make mental notes and scribble ideas on scraps of paper for future use. Yesterday, a process of deliberation led the Expedition Leader and Captain to conclude that we should follow up on the initial sighting and take advantage of our final morning in Franz Josef Land to visit this newfound colony.
After an entrance punctuated by bowhead whales, we launched our fleet of Zodiacs, headed over to the white speckled cliff and found that about 150 pairs of ivory gulls had taken up residence. This is perhaps 1% of the world population, so a significant find by any standard. It is of particular interest because they are nesting on a cliff (most all known Russian colonies of ivory gulls are on more level ground) and also mixed in with kittiwakes (most ivory gull colonies are single species). As we moved closer the white specks resolved themselves and revealed large downy chicks being attended by their immaculate parents. This was a rare chance indeed to spend quality time with this icon of the Arctic, especially so knowing that we were adding new data to the knowledge of these rare and beautiful gulls: a fitting climax to our expedition to Franz Josef Land.
