Hummock Island is the largest of a group of islands in
King George Bay
King George Bay () is a large bay on the coast of West Falkland in the Falkland Islands, facing westwards. There are three settlements on the bay Chartres, Dunnose Head and Roy Cove. Storm Mountain is on the north coast. It contains numerous ...
in the
Falkland Islands. It has a land area of and is about long in a north-west to south-east direction.
[ Hummock Island is off the western coast of ]West Falkland
West Falkland ( es, Isla Gran Malvina) is the second largest of the Falkland Islands in the South Atlantic. It is a hilly island, separated from East Falkland by the Falkland Sound. Its area is , 37% of the total area of the islands. Its coastli ...
, in a bay that leads to the estuary of the Chartres River.[Strange, Ian (1983) ''The Falkland Islands''] The highest point on the island is in the north-east and is . There are cliffs which often reach over high.[
Hummock Island is situated between Rabbit Island and Middle Island. Other islands in the Hummock Island group include Green Island and Gid's Island.][
In the middle of the Twentieth Century the island was used as an extension of the New Island sheep farm, and heavy grazing caused much of the Tussac grass to be eaten out. This has left areas of bare 'black ground'. However, the present owner has indicated that he will not restock the island but will allow the vegetation to recover.][ Gid's and Middle Islands are nature reserves.
]
Important Bird Area
The Hummock 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 ...
(IBA). Birds for which the site is of conservation significance include southern rockhopper penguins (1700 breeding pairs), imperial shags, striated caracaras (8–10 pairs), and Cobb's wrens.
References
Islands of the Falkland Islands
Important Bird Areas of the Falkland Islands
Seabird colonies
Penguin colonies
{{Falklands-geo-stub