Update from 51˚S!

 

Dear Experiment Supporters,

Greetings from The Falklands! Thanks in large part to our trip down here last December, we have had an unbelievably successful expedition for the past 3 weeks. After many tussles with our corer and the dense peat here we decided to come at peat excavation the old fashioned way, with a shovel. This method involves being covered head to toe with slimy, stinky, beautiful peat, backaches for days, blisters and somehow, a lot of laughing. Our largest hole was 15 feet deep, 6 feet wide, and 2 feet across. We have successfully retrieved peat columns from Bleaker Islands, Westpoint Island, New Island and Surf Bay. We also were able to successfully core Kidney Island where the peat is moist and has never had the chance to dry out, so it turns out schlepping the corer down here was worth it afterall. In our book, five peat records in total equals a major success (and lots of lab work to keep us busy!).

 

Image: Kit standing at the front of the deepest column, Surf Bay, Falkland Islands

We have each had other side projects we have been helping each other with as well. For Dulcinea’s project, we have been doing a series of vegetation grids at most of the locations we’ve visited. The vegetation grids consist of marking out a 5 x 5 meter grid, taking note of percent coverage of each species of plant, counting burrows and taking soil and Tussac grass samples (rinse and repeat 20x). Dulcinea has also gone around and collected her temperature and humidity data from the rain collectors she set up here in September and was pleased to find that all four of them had successfully recorded data for the last several months! She is working at the Department of Agriculture here in Stanley for the next few days to process the soil samples she collected so as to avoid having to ship them back to the States. She has also found time for grant writing while down here, which is all just part of the fun, isn’t it?

 

Image: Dulcinea perched at the Best Study Site In The World, Westpoint Island, Falkland Islands

I have been doing test pits at most of the sites we’ve visited in order to try to determine if a site has anything of archaeological interest. It has been a tricky task considering the expanse of the islands and the state of erosion on many of them. I did have success out at New Island, where we found six heaping piles of bones (primarily sea lion and penguin). Though they are most certainly the result of human activity, the trick is finding out who did the killing and the piling and when they did it. The Falklands were subject to the sealing and whaling industry and in many places the records of where these things took place is a bit suspect. I have taken bone samples which I will send off for radiocarbon dating in order to determine if these piles are the result of European sealers or humans who came prior to European arrival. Only time will tell how old the bones are, but until then, three factors give me hope that the piles are the result of pre-European humans: 1. Of the tens of skulls we found, none had the tell-tale fractures that would occur from bludgeoning or bullets (techniques sealers used), 2. Growing on top of the bone piles were large balsam bogs, which take hundreds of years to fully develop and can be upwards of one thousand years old, and 3. The site of the piles is where two stone points (perhaps three) have reportedly been found. So for now, I must wait for radiocarbon dating to work its magic in order to further unravel what is going on.

 

Image: Just a few bones collected from one of the bone piles, New Island, Falkland Islands

I have had a fabulous time communicating with students across the country through the Follow A Researcher program. If you want to check out everything that has been going on down here at each place, take a look at the following link and scroll down to “Kit’s Updates from The Falkland Islands” for video updates complete with footage (http://umaine.edu/4h/youth/follow-a-researcher/videos/). The website also has links to all of the photos I’ve posted and tweets that I have sent about the trip.

 

Image: Kit during a live Twitter Q & A with FAR students, Cape Dolphin, Falkland Islands

We have only a few days left in the Falklands before we return, which is a mixed bag of emotions. After three and a half weeks of mental and physical output, we are exhausted to the core of our very beings, but are energized by a renewed love for the spectacular place we get to call our office. As I am writing this, waves are crashing on a rock ledge out at sea, the wind is (surprisingly) not howling, upland geese are whistling their calls in the distance, and in a final push Dulcinea is sampling some Tussac grass near by. Our gentle yearning for home is muffled by the sensory overload the natural beauty of this place boasts. And yet, come Saturday we will find ourselves nestled in amongst the other travelers like sardines in a flying tube of steel hurtling back toward our homeland, feeling like new versions of ourselves and excited to take the next step (in the lab) toward scientific glory.

 

Image: Black-browed Albatross flying in formation, Westpoint Island, Falkland Islands

Thank you for all of your support. We couldn’t have made this research happen without you and will of course continue to update you along the way!

Warm regards from the Falklands,

Kit and Dulcinea

 

Image: Gentoo Penguins returning from a day out at sea, Bleaker Island, Falkland Islands

 

Image: Sea Lion mayhem, New Island, Falkland Islands

 

Image: Underwater stalker, New Island, Falkland Islands

 

Image: Rockhopper Hairstyles, Westpoint Island, Falkland Islands