Bleaker Island ( es, link=no, Isla Maria) is one of the
Falkland Islands
The Falkland Islands (; es, Islas Malvinas, link=no ) is an archipelago in the South Atlantic Ocean on the Patagonian Shelf. The principal islands are about east of South America's southern Patagonian coast and about from Cape Dubouzet ...
, lying off south east
Lafonia
Lafonia is a peninsula forming the southern part of East Falkland, the largest of the Falkland Islands.
Geography and geology
Shaped like the letter "E", it is joined to the northern part of the island by an isthmus that is almost wide. Were ...
(the southern peninsula of
East Falkland
East Falkland ( es, Isla Soledad) is the largest island of the Falklands in the South Atlantic, having an area of or 54% of the total area of the Falklands. The island consists of two main land masses, of which the more southerly is known as La ...
). The name is a corruption of "Breaker Island" due to the waves that break on it. It was also known as "Long Island" at one point.
Geography
Bleaker Island is long, narrow and low-lying and the southern tip of the Island is separated from
Lafonia
Lafonia is a peninsula forming the southern part of East Falkland, the largest of the Falkland Islands.
Geography and geology
Shaped like the letter "E", it is joined to the northern part of the island by an isthmus that is almost wide. Were ...
by a thin stretch of water named 'The Jump'. It has an area of and is long. The island is no wider than at any point and tapers to several thin necks of land at various points down its length. The highest point is Semaphore Hill, at . The western shores of Bleaker Island are low-lying and fringed by shallow stone beaches. The east coast of the island is characterised by low cliffs, interspersed with sand and pebble beaches and gulches and is directly exposed to the Atlantic Ocean. The island has several large ponds and the most impressive beach is the 'Sandy Bay'.
History
Bleaker Island has been a sheep farm for over a hundred years. The island was managed by Arthur Cobb, a locally well-known agriculturalist and amateur naturalist, in the early 20th century who wrote a book on the subject, containing forty six of his own black and white photographs.
The low aspect of the Island resulted in many ship-wrecks off the Island in the 19th and 20th centuries. There were five ship-wrecks on Bleaker Island in the first quarter of the 20th century. The most famous of these was the French tall ship 'Cassard' wrecked on the southern tip of the Island carrying a cargo of coal in May 1906.
The Island has been run as an
organic sheep and cattle farm by Mike and Phyll Rendell since 1999, and has the small
Bleaker Island Settlement
Bleaker Island ( es, link=no, Isla Maria) is one of the Falkland Islands, lying off south east Lafonia (the southern peninsula of East Falkland). The name is a corruption of "Breaker Island" due to the waves that break on it. It was also known a ...
located on an
isthmus
An isthmus (; ; ) is a narrow piece of land connecting two larger areas across an expanse of water by which they are otherwise separated. A tombolo is an isthmus that consists of a spit or bar, and a strait is the sea counterpart of an isthmu ...
in the centre of its length. They built a self-catering cottage, "Cobb's Cottage", and a house there in 2000 called "The Outlook", and in 2011 they added a new house, called "Cassard House". They employ a farming couple who live there.
Wildlife
The northern half of Bleaker Island is a National Nature Reserve – being designated in 1967. A total of 79 species of flowering plant have been identified on Bleaker Island. Flora includes the yellow and dog orchid, and
lady's slipper
Cypripedioideae is a subfamily of orchids commonly known as lady's slipper orchids, lady slipper orchids or slipper orchids. Cypripedioideae includes the genera ''Cypripedium, Mexipedium, Paphiopedilum, Phragmipedium'' and ''Selenipedium''. They ...
. A stretch of several kilometres of the east coast is vegetated by stands of
tussac grass
''Poa flabellata'', commonly known as tussac grass or just tussac, is a tussock grass native to southern South America, the Falkland Islands, South Georgia and other islands in the South Atlantic. There are also two isolated records from the her ...
. The island is home to a wide variety of wildlife including
southern sea lion
The South American sea lion (''Otaria flavescens'', formerly ''Otaria byronia''), also called the southern sea lion and the Patagonian sea lion, is a sea lion found on the western and southeastern coasts of South America. It is the only member ...
s with some visiting
southern elephant seal
The southern elephant seal (''Mirounga leonina'') is one of two species of elephant seals. It is the largest member of the clade Pinnipedia and the order Carnivora, as well as the largest extant marine mammal that is not a cetacean. It gets it ...
s.
Norway rats were accidentally introduced to the island in the 1980s. They have now spread throughout the island and onto First, Second and Third Islands.
Overgrazing
Overgrazing occurs when plants are exposed to intensive grazing for extended periods of time, or without sufficient recovery periods. It can be caused by either livestock in poorly managed agricultural applications, game reserves, or nature res ...
was a problem but reduced grazing pressure is helping the slow regeneration of tussac and native flowering plants.
[
]
Birds
The Bleaker Island group has been identified by BirdLife International
BirdLife International is a global partnership of non-governmental organizations that strives to conserve birds and their habitats. BirdLife International's priorities include preventing extinction of bird species, identifying and safeguarding ...
as an Important Bird Area
An Important Bird and Biodiversity Area (IBA) is an area identified using an internationally agreed set of criteria as being globally important for the conservation of bird populations.
IBA was developed and sites are identified by BirdLife Int ...
. A survey identified 49 bird species on the islands, 37 of which were confirmed as breeding there. Breeding species include rockhopper, Magellanic and gentoo penguin
The gentoo penguin ( ) (''Pygoscelis papua'') is a penguin species (or possibly a species complex) in the genus ''Pygoscelis'', most closely related to the Adélie penguin (''P. adeliae'') and the chinstrap penguin (''P. antarcticus''). The ear ...
s, king
King is the title given to a male monarch in a variety of contexts. The female equivalent is queen, which title is also given to the consort of a king.
*In the context of prehistory, antiquity and contemporary indigenous peoples, the tit ...
and rock cormorant
The rock shag (''Leucocarbo magellanicus''), also known as the Magellanic cormorant, is a marine cormorant found around the southernmost coasts of South America. Its breeding range is from around Valdivia, Chile, south to Cape Horn and Tierra d ...
s, many small bird species and several birds of prey, including striated and crested caracara
The crested caracara (''Caracara plancus'') is a bird of prey in the family Falconidae. It is found from the southern United States through Central and South America to Tierra del Fuego. It was formerly placed in the genus ''Polyborus''.
Descri ...
s.
References
External links
Survey of Bleaker Island birds
Bleaker Island website
{{Falkland Islands topics, state=collapsed
Islands of the Falkland Islands
Important Bird Areas of the Falkland Islands