This week two of the Macquarie Island Rangers Eddie and Steve report in.

A quiz night

A plan was floated to conduct a quiz night but how to do this, how to involve everyone and cover a range of subjects, presented a challenge.

After thinking through several ideas, a set of questions devised by six different work groups seemed like a good way to go.

Two of our talented musicians Jessie and Steve offered to play a musical question to start each round with a range of well-known tunes.

The wildlife team were away from station but sent in their questions, which included several from a talk they'd presented recently on their work program and general local wildlife. Our local weather team came with a set of weather-themed questions. Our chippies team took great delight in sledging their fellow trades teams with multiple choice questions where all answers were correct. The comms crew had some technical questions which caused some debate. The electricians' set of questions included how to turn on a remote power unit at a field hut and the plumbing team had a few questions which were discussed afterwards deep into the night.

Thanks to everyone contributing, this meant a good fun evening with a great use of music in each round. An entertaining time and the winners were separated by only a few points.

Eddie Firth, Ranger in Charge (AKA Quiz Master)

A big dining room with a window on the left and a group of people sitting around a table
A man sitting on a couch in the dining room
A man sits on a bar stool reading from a notebook
One person on a bar stool with a guitar and a woman sitting on a chair with a violin
A smiling man in a pale denim shirt and a bright blue hat with sparkles on it.

Tourist Season Wraps Up

This week saw the last of the tourist ship visits to Macquarie Island for the 2024/25 summer season. Each of the limited number of ships to visit brings scores of lucky tourists and provides them a unique educational experience. Visitors are treated to a guided tour of the Isthmus highlighting the Island’s natural and human history, while a visit to Sandy Bay, some 7 km south of station, provides the awestruck visitors with some impressive scenery and the rare opportunity to view close up some of the island’s iconic wildlife species. World Heritage Area and Nature Reserve status means that the educational visits are closely controlled by Tasmania Parks and Wildlife Service and a ranger is present during every visit.

Summer ranger Steve said “It’s great to witness the excitement and wonder on the faces of the lucky visitors and to share with them the privilege of simply being here. Each visitor that I speak with is struck by the beauty and ecological richness of the place and will take with them lifelong memories, and an understanding of why the careful stewardship of such rare places is so important into the future”

This week’s ship visit also marks the end of a summer deployment for wildlife biologists Demelza and Georgia. They have been busy through the Summer conducting important science, looking at filing in some gaps in our knowledge about the foraging behaviour of some of the island’s key bird species and helping out with some of the long-term wildlife monitoring programs.  The keen young scientists added a vibrancy and flare to station life that will be missed as they return to Tasmania aboard the season’s last tourist ship.   

Ranger with mask smiles to camera, in the background tourists on beach amongst young seals and in the distance a ship on the horizon
Five people smiling to camera in foreground, behind on beach king penguins and in the distance a ship
Photo taken from small boat as it approached stern of large vessel. Mountains of island in the background.
Two young seals lie under a large orange arrow held up on two stakes
A group of king penguins walk along rocky beach, in the distance on the horizon a ship
Tourist groups arrive on the beach, with king penguins amongst them, and ship in distance on horizon

A Celebration of International Women's Day at Macquarie Island

I thought a little note on International Women's Day this week was appropriate from Macquarie Island this year.

And why do you ask?  Well, this year at Macca one third of the station population is female. Whether it's 8 of the 24 through Winter, or 10 of the 30 over Summer. And filling roles across all areas of station - Station Leader, Doctor, Parks Rangers, Chefs, Weather Observers, Field Training Officer, and Wildlife Biologists.  Something worth celebrating!

Having completed three seasons in Antarctic or the Sub-Antarctic and coming from a career within the Navy before that - this is the first time I've been able to enjoy such a statistic. To me, this is what International Women's Day is about in Australia. It's about normalising equality. Having diversity across a group which is deployed thousands of kilometers from home in a harsh isolated environment. And through that diversity we have thrived. 

International Women’s Day is a day to celebrate women, their accomplishments and achievements, to reflect on how far we have come. Just by looking on the walls of photos of past ANARE expeditions to Macquarie Island, it's starkly obvious, and wonderful, to see how far we've come in 77 years. And I want to thank those women who have come before us and blazed the path for us to follow.

Bec, Station Leader

A group of eight women, five standing and two kneeling, smile to camera.
Group of 10 women, 6 sitting on fence, 4 standing in front, smile to camera. In the background a rocky bay.
Group of 10 women, 6 sitting on fence, 4 standing in front, make heart signs with hands and smile to camera.
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