Keppel Island ( es, Isla de la Vigia) 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 between
Saunders
Saunders is a surname of English and Scottish patronymic origin derived from Sander, a mediaeval form of Alexander.See also: Sander (name)
People
* Ab Saunders (1851–1883), American cowboy and gunman
* Al Saunders (born 1947), American footb ...
and
Pebble
A pebble is a clast of rock with a particle size of based on the Udden-Wentworth scale of sedimentology. Pebbles are generally considered larger than granules ( in diameter) and smaller than cobbles ( in diameter). A rock made predominant ...
islands, and near
Golding Island
Golding Island (sometimes seen spelt as "Goulding Island") is one of the Falkland Islands, just to the north of West Falkland in Keppel Sound and near Keppel and Pebble Islands. It has a complex shape, with narrow headlands and bays, and a pond ...
to the north 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 ...
on
Keppel Sound
Keppel Sound ( Spanish: ''Bahia de la Cruzada' is a bay to the north of West Falkland in the Falkland Islands. Islands in/bordering the sound include Golding Island
Golding Island (sometimes seen spelt as "Goulding Island") is one of the Falkl ...
. It has an area of and its highest point, Mt. Keppel, is high. There is a wide, flat valley in the centre of the island with several freshwater lakes. The central valley rises steeply to the south-west, west and north. The north-east is low-lying, with a deeply indented coastline.
[
The large population of ]Norway rats
The brown rat (''Rattus norvegicus''), also known as the common rat, street rat, sewer rat, wharf rat, Hanover rat, Norway rat, Norwegian rat and Parisian rat, is a widespread species of common rat. One of the largest muroids, it is a brown o ...
on the island constitute an invasive species
An invasive species otherwise known as an alien is an introduced organism that becomes overpopulated and harms its new environment. Although most introduced species are neutral or beneficial with respect to other species, invasive species ad ...
. They are predators of birds that nest there, of which several species are of conservation interest.[
]
History
Early British settlers named the island after Admiral Augustus Keppel, First Lord of the Admiralty
The First Lord of the Admiralty, or formally the Office of the First Lord of the Admiralty, was the political head of the English and later British Royal Navy. He was the government's senior adviser on all naval affairs, responsible for the di ...
in the 18th century.
An Anglican
Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. It is one of th ...
missionary
A missionary is a member of a Religious denomination, religious group which is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Tho ...
settlement set up in the mid-19th century served some Yaghan people
The Yahgan (also called Yagán, Yaghan, Yámana, Yamana or Tequenica) are a group of indigenous peoples in the Southern Cone. Their traditional territory includes the islands south of Isla Grande de Tierra del Fuego, extending their presence int ...
brought there from Tierra del Fuego
Tierra del Fuego (, ; Spanish for "Land of the Fire", rarely also Fireland in English) is an archipelago off the southernmost tip of the South American mainland, across the Strait of Magellan. The archipelago consists of the main island, Isla G ...
. They taught them farming and English, and some of the British party learned Yamana (or Yahgan). In 1885, the island was developed by European immigrants for sheep farm
Sheep farming or sheep husbandry is the raising and breeding of domestic sheep. It is a branch of animal husbandry. Sheep are raised principally for their meat (lamb and mutton), milk ( sheep's milk), and fiber (wool). They also yield sheepskin ...
ing.
In the late 20th century, the island was designated as a nature reserve
A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, or features of geological or ...
. It has a small settlement on the east coast, but no permanent population.
Missionary station
The mission on Keppel Island was established in 1855 by the South American Missionary Society (formerly the Patagonian Mission Society), initially under Captain William Parker Snow
William Parker Snow (27 November 1817 – 12 March 1895) was an Arctic explorer, writer and mariner. He wrote several books on his expeditions including the ''Voyage of the Prince Albert'' under Sir John Franklin. He served as captain on the ''A ...
. It operated until 1898. Captain Allen Gardiner
Allen Francis Gardiner (1794–1851) was a British Royal Navy officer and missionary to Patagonia.
Biography
Gardiner was the fifth son of Samuel Gardiner of Coombe Lodge, Oxfordshire, by Mary, daughter of Charles Boddam of Capel House, Bull's ...
, founder of the Society, had proposed use of this island, as a less hostile climate and environment than Tierra del Fuego, from which missionaries could gain the confidence of the Yaghan and learn their language.
From 1856, Anglican missionaries persuaded several Yaghan to move from Tierra del Fuego to Keppel Island, where they learnt farming techniques and some English. The Yahgan did not go to Keppel Island until a few years after the British built "Cranmer Station" near Committee Bay. (It was named for Thomas Cranmer
Thomas Cranmer (2 July 1489 – 21 March 1556) was a leader of the English Reformation and Archbishop of Canterbury during the reigns of Henry VIII, Edward VI and, for a short time, Mary I. He helped build the case for the annulment of Henry' ...
, the Protestant
Protestantism is a Christian denomination, branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Reformation, Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century agai ...
martyr.) One of the more notable visitors to Cranmer Station (in 1860) was Jemmy Button
Orundellico, known as "Jeremy Button" or "Jemmy Button" (c. 1815–1864), was a member of the Yaghan (or Yámana) people from islands around Tierra del Fuego, in modern Chile and Argentina. He was taken to England by Captain FitzRoy in HMS ''B ...
, a Yahgan who had learnt English and was taken to England as a visitor with two other Yahgans aboard in 1830–31, on its first return trip.
After some setbacks, the mission succeeded in 1869 in founding another mission on Tierra del Fuego
Tierra del Fuego (, ; Spanish for "Land of the Fire", rarely also Fireland in English) is an archipelago off the southernmost tip of the South American mainland, across the Strait of Magellan. The archipelago consists of the main island, Isla G ...
, at Ushuaia
Ushuaia ( , ) is the capital of Tierra del Fuego, Antártida e Islas del Atlántico Sur Province, Argentina. With a population of nearly 75,000 and a location below the 54th parallel south latitude, Ushuaia claims the title of world's southern ...
near the Beagle Canal, under the leadership of Waite Stirling
Waite Hockin Stirling (1829 – 19 November 1923) was a 19th-century missionary with the Patagonian Missionary Society (later known as the South American Missionary Society) and was the first Anglican Bishop of the Falkland Islands. He was bro ...
, who later became a bishop in the region. Thomas Bridges was a young Anglican missionary who started there in 1871, having already learned the Yahgan language while on Keppel Island. He became fluent, and over a decade, wrote a Yámana grammar and dictionary containing 30,000 words. It was considered valuable for ethnological study of the people.
Today, the mission bailiff's house, the chapel, and the stone walls of some of the Yaghan dwellings remain intact on Keppel Island. Some stone walls have been used to provide foundations for present-day buildings. The ruins are listed buildings
In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...
and represent amongst the oldest in the islands.
Important bird area
Keppel Island 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 Falkland steamer duck
The Falkland steamer duck (''Tachyeres brachypterus'') is a species of flightless duck found on the Falkland Islands in the South Atlantic Ocean. The steamer ducks get their name from their unconventional swimming behaviour in which they flap the ...
s, ruddy-headed geese, 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 (1250 breeding pairs) southern rockhopper penguin
The southern rockhopper penguin group (''Eudyptes chrysocome''), is a species of rockhopper penguin, that is sometimes considered distinct from the northern rockhopper penguin. It occurs in subantarctic waters of the western Pacific and Indian O ...
s (780 pairs), Magellanic penguin
The Magellanic penguin (''Spheniscus magellanicus'') is a South American penguin, breeding in coastal Patagonia, including Argentina, Chile, and the Falkland Islands, with some migrating to Brazil and Uruguay, where they are occasionally seen a ...
s, black-browed albatross
The black-browed albatross (''Thalassarche melanophris''), also known as the black-browed mollymawk,Robertson, C. J. R. (2003) is a large seabird of the albatross family Diomedeidae; it is the most widespread and common member of its family.
T ...
es (1800 pairs) and white-bridled finch
The white-bridled finch (''Melanodera melanodera''), also known as the canary-winged finch or black-throated finch, is a small passerine bird belonging to the genus '' Melanodera'' together with the yellow-bridled finch (''M. xanthogramma''). Fo ...
es.
See also
* Thomas Bridges
References
* Jeff Rubin, ''Antarctica'' (Lonely Planet
Lonely Planet is a travel guide book publisher. Founded in Australia in 1973, the company has printed over 150 million books.
History Early years
Lonely Planet was founded by married couple Maureen and Tony Wheeler. In 1972, they embarked ...
guide).
* Stonehouse, B (ed.) ''Encyclopedia of Antarctica and the Southern Oceans'' (2002, )
External links
''Keppel Island: the South American Missionary Society settlement in the Falkland Islands''
Liverpool Museums
*
Falkland Islands website
{{Authority control
Islands of the Falkland Islands
Important Bird Areas of the Falkland Islands
Seabird colonies
Anglican mission in Tierra del Fuego
Penguin colonies