Baie de l'Oiseau is a natural harbour in the Loranchet Peninsula, in the North-Western part of the island Grande Terre, part of the Kerguelen Islands. It was the landing site of the expedition under

Yves de Kerguelen Yves may refer to: * Yves, Charente-Maritime, a commune of the Charente-Maritime department in France * Yves (given name), including a list of people with the name * ''Yves'' (single album), a single album by Loona * ''Yves'' (film), a 2019 Fren ...

in 1772, and later of the expedition under James Cook in 1776. The site of Port-Christmas is part of the bay.

Geography

The bay is located at the extreme North of the Kerguelen archipelago, and open towards the East, between Cap Français at the North, and the cape of Kerguelen Arch which closes it on the South, and distinguishes it from the neighbouring Baie de la Dauphine. It is 3.8 km long and 2.1 km wide at its largest. The 552-metre Mont Havergal dominates the site and shelters it from the wind. In the 19th century, it was used as a haven for whaling and seal hunting ships.

Discovery

Kerguelen The Kerguelen Islands ( or ; in French commonly ' but officially ', ), also known as the Desolation Islands (' in French), are a group of islands in the sub-Antarctic constituting one of the two exposed parts of the Kerguelen Plateau, a large ...

could see the side during his first voyage in February 1772, but could not land, and anchored at the South, in Baie du Lion-Marin, where he claimed the archipelago for France. In his second voyage, in December 1773, he entered the harbour and named in Baie de l'Oiseau, after the frigate ''Oiseau'', under Rosnovet, one of the ships of the expedition. On 6 January 1774, he sent Rochegude ashore to leave a bottle with a message claiming the site for France. On 2 January 1893, Commander Lieutard, of aviso ''Eure'', renewed the claim.

Fauna and flora

The flora is limited to moss and

lichens A lichen ( , ) is a composite organism that arises from algae or cyanobacteria living among filaments of multiple fungi species in a mutualistic relationship.tundra In physical geography, tundra () is a type of biome where tree growth is hindered by frigid temperatures and short growing seasons. The term ''tundra'' comes through Russian (') from the Kildin Sámi word (') meaning "uplands", "treeless mou ...

ecosystem, as well as a cane grass at the mouth of the spillway of Lake Rochegude. There are no trees or bushes, which inspired Cook to call the Islands "Desolation islands" when he visited in 1776. His surgeon, William Anderson, had however noted the existence

Pringlea ''Pringlea antiscorbutica'', commonly known as Kerguelen cabbage, is a flowering plant and the sole member of the monotypic genus ''Pringlea'' in the family Brassicaceae. Its common name comes from the archipelago of its discovery, the Kerguelen ...

at the Bay, a source of

Vitamin C Vitamin C (also known as ascorbic acid and ascorbate) is a water-soluble vitamin found in citrus and other fruits and vegetables, also sold as a dietary supplement and as a topical 'serum' ingredient to treat melasma (dark pigment spots) ...

of interest at a time when

scurvy Scurvy is a disease resulting from a lack of vitamin C (ascorbic acid). Early symptoms of deficiency include weakness, feeling tired and sore arms and legs. Without treatment, decreased red blood cells, gum disease, changes to hair, and bleeding ...

was a common sanitary problem for sailors. During the Ross expedition of 1840, Doctor McCormick, exploring Mount Havergal, found fossilised tree trunk, proving the existence of forests in a previous geological era. The bay is home to temporary colonies of

King Penguins The king penguin (''Aptenodytes patagonicus'') is the second largest species of penguin, smaller, but somewhat similar in appearance to the emperor penguin. There are two subspecies: ''A. p. patagonicus'' and ''A. p. halli''; ''patagonicus'' i ...

and a variety of other birds, such as

petrel Petrels are tube-nosed seabirds in the bird order Procellariiformes. Description The common name does not indicate relationship beyond that point, as "petrels" occur in three of the four families within that group (all except the albatross f ...

s or albatrosses, which nest in the cliffs of the bay, as well as colonies of

South American 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 and

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 its ...

. Rabbit were deliberately introduced in 1874, and have since been observed in the cliffs of Port-Christmas. Southern right whales have also be seen near the bay, and on the North-Western shores of the archipelago.

Notes and references

{{coord, -48.685, 69.052, type:waterbody_region:FR-TF, display=title Bays of France