Page 308 - Atlas Sea Birds Ver1

An aerial view of the Cape Point seal colony
An aerial view of the Duikerklip seal colony
munity (Oosthuizen and David 1988). It is also known Harvesting status: This colony was established in the
as Duiker (cormorant) Island, but the locals simply call it post-harvesting period in South Africa.
Seal Island. A vagrant Southern Elephant Seal (Mirounga
leonine) named “Buffel” visited the colony at least twice. 25. Partridge Point
Aerial surveys of this colony commenced in 1984, when Coordinates: 34.256 S; 18.481 E
11 pups and 4,628 adults were counted. However, Status: Non-breeding.
seals and their pups were observed at the locality in Description: This colony is situated on a rocky outcrop
1958, together with breeding Bank Cormorants (Rand off Partridge Point near Simon’s Town. It is also known as
1963). The eastern side of the colony is protected from Seal Rock. Seals were first observed in 1974 (Oosthuizen
extreme weather whereas the western side is exposed. and David 1988) and no pup production has been recorded
Storms wash pups off the rocks and such pups often to date. Oosthuizen and David (1988) reported that be-
land at the nearby coast. Pup production was low (<80 tween 50 and 717 seals utilised the rocks between 1974
per breeding season) in the 1980s (Oosthuizen and and 1986. During the 2020 aerial survey, 646 seals were
David 1988), but increased in the 2000s. An average counted in the colony.
of 625 pups were counted on three surveys conducted Conservation status: There is currently no protection
between 2014 and 2020. for the rocks or waters around them.
Conservation status: The island was declared a Provin- Eco-tourism: Unregulated seal snorkel and swim-with
cial Nature Reserve in terms of Section 6 of the Nature activities are conducted at the rocks.
Conservation Ordinance, 1974 (Official Gazette 4524, Harvesting status: There is no history of harvesting at this
1988). It is managed by Cape Nature with access restricted colony.
to research activities under a permit. The waters around
the island are part of the Table Mountain National Park. 26. Seal Island, False Bay
Eco-tourism: Boat-based seal viewing (Wickens et al. Coordinates: 34.136 S; 18.583 E
1991) and unregulated swim-with or snorkel-with seal tours Status: Breeding
are conducted at the colony (Heidi 2020). Description: This rocky island is situated in the northern
Harvesting status: There is no history of harvesting at this part of, and has the largest of the three rookeries of Cape
colony. Fur Seals in, False Bay (Rand 1963). Seabirds have
also bred at this island (Rand 1963, Shaughnessy 1984).
24. Cape Point Competition for space and disturbance from seal harvest-
Coordinates: 34.356 S; 18.498 E ing operations reduced population sizes of some seabirds
Status: Limited breeding. (Rand 1951; Shelton et al. 1984). The island is now domi-
Description: This colony is located on an east-facing, nated by seals.
rocky cliff below the Cape Point Lighthouse. It was dis-
covered and photographed for the first time in 2018, when
there were no seabirds breeding in its immediate vicinity.
However, around the point to the west, there was a colony
of Cape and White-breasted (P. lucidus) cormorants. Few
pups have been born thus far (4–6 p.a.) but there were 374
older seals in 2020. The terrain has a steep slope, which
may preclude vertical expansion of the colony. However,
there is room for an eastward horizontal expansion.
Conservation status: The colony is situated within the
Table Mountain National Park that is managed by the
South African National Parks in terms of Sections 39 and
41 of the National Environmental Management: Protected
Areas Act (Act 57 of 2003). Access is controlled.
Eco-tourism: The national park is a tourist attraction, but
no seal-targeted tourism is currently offered. An aerial view of Partridge Point

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