Sally Poncet

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Sally Poncet
Born
Sally Brothers

1954
Hobart, Tasmania, Australia
NationalityAustralian
Occupation(s)polar explorer, Antarctic biologist and ornithologist
Years active1977-present
Awards Blue Water Medal (1992)
Fuchs Medal (2010)
Polar Medal (2015)

Sally Poncet (born 1954) is an Australian-born scientist and adventurer who has explored and studied the Antarctic region since 1977. Her specialty is birds and she made extensive studies of albatross and their habitats for the British Antarctic Survey. She has written guidebooks on preservation of the flora and fauna of South Georgia and received numerous awards and honors, including the Blue Water Medal, the Fuchs Medal and the Polar Medal for her contributions to understanding the southern polar region.

Contents

Early life

Sally Brothers [1] was born in 1954 [2] to a dentist [3] and grew up in Hobart, Tasmania, Australia. [4] Brothers attended Fahan School, graduating in 1970 [5] and then enrolled at the University of Tasmania to further her studies. [2] In 1973 she met Jerome Poncet, a Frenchman, who was sailing aboard the Damien I circumnavigating the globe. She completed her degree in botany and zoology and then joined Poncet in France, where they were married in 1974. The couple made plans to sail on Damien II through the Southern Ocean [4] and set sail in 1976 [3] aboard the 50-foot steel schooner for Antarctica. [6]

Career

Arriving in 1977, [7] the couple prepared to do a series of population censuses of the wildlife. [3] In 1978, they spent the winter in Marguerite Bay on the Antarctic Peninsula, [8] where Poncet began a survey of the seabirds of the area [9] and a count of elephant seals. The following year, Poncet gave birth to her first son, Dion on South Georgia Island. Their boat had become trapped in the ice and they were forced to wait until a British Research ship, the R R S Bransfield, was able to release their schooner. The couple sailed back to Tasmania for repairs, where their second son, Leiv was born in 1981. The following year, they returned to the Antarctic for the 1982-1983 bird season count and settled in the Falkland Islands. Their son Lars Nigel, nicknamed Diti, was born in the Falkland Islands in 1984. [3] Throughout the 1980s, Poncet worked in conjunction with the British Antarctic Survey (BAS) mapping locations of colonies around South Georgia and the Willis Islands of elephant seals, macaroni penguins and mollymawks. [10]

In 1987, couple leased a sheep farm in the Falkland Islands [3] and continued to spend up to four summer months each year sailing and studying the wildlife in South Georgia. [6] Poncet spent a decade surveying the birdlife of the region for the BAS. [11] In 1989, the couple were featured in National Geographic [6] (March, 1989) and in 1990, National Geographic Explorer presented a documentary "Antarctic Adventure", recounting the Poncets' journey to Antarctica and their explorations of the southern polar region. [3] Throughout the 1990s, Poncet continued her collaboration with the BAS, performing vegetation baseline studies. [10] Damien Bay was named after she and Jerome's boat, which had been chartered by the BAS for research. [12]

In 2001, concern about damage by tourists to the Cape Royds and Cape Evans areas in which Ernest Shackleton and Robert Falcon Scott had established expedition bases caused the Government of South Georgia & the South Sandwich Islands (GSGSSI) to hire Poncet to prepare an environmental assessment of the region [13] to establish an environmental baseline. [14] In 2002, Poncet began trials on a rat eradication project in an effort to restore the South Georgia pipit population. [7] The brown rat population, originally arriving on the island aboard ships in the 19th century, had caused extreme losses in the petrel, pipit and prion bird colonies. [15] It was the first such trial in South Georgia [7] and a similar project on the Falklands led Poncet in 2011 to the discovery of a new breeding ground of southern giant petrel in the Choiseul Sound. [16] By 2015, the South Georgia Heritage Trust project had cleared the island of rodents, [7] with Poncet reporting the first pipit nest in Schlieper Bay of the eradication target area. The nest was found near Weddell Point during one of Poncet's expeditions tracking albatross. Since her report, numerous other nest sightings have occurred. [15]

Poncet co-authored with Kim Crosbie two editions of the South Georgia Visitor’s Guide. She has also worked with the GSGSSI as an advisor on reindeer eradication, [7] using humane methods to relocate the invasive species which has caused damage to vegetation. [17] In 2005, Poncet led the Petrel and Prion Survey team in work on a census of the wandering albatross. The count was triggered by concerns over the catastrophic death of the birds because of longline fishing. [18] Between 2005 and 2007, Poncet led a similar count of the giant petrel and white-chinned petrel colonies. [14] As the GSGSSI is committed to performing a survey on the wandering albatross every ten years, Poncet partnered with Cheesemans’ Ecology Safaris in a public-private partnership in 2015 to offset costs of the census. Poncet led the scientific research conducted during the expedition. [19]

Awards and honours

In 1992, Poncet and her husband were awarded the Blue Water Medal for their years of cruising in the Antarctic and publication of a guidebook focused on preservation of the region. [20] In 1995, she received the Gerdy Jevtic alumni medal from Fahan School. [5] Poncet was awarded the Fuchs Medal from the British Antarctic Survey in 2010 for her wildlife and vegetation mapping and conservation management strategies of the southern polar region. [10] In 2015, she was awarded the Polar Medal for her research and efforts at protecting the biodiversity of South Georgia and the Antarctic. [7]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands</span> British Overseas Territory in the South Atlantic

South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands (SGSSI) is a British Overseas Territory in the southern Atlantic Ocean. It is a remote and inhospitable collection of islands, consisting of South Georgia and a chain of smaller islands known as the South Sandwich Islands. South Georgia is 165 kilometres (103 mi) long and 35 kilometres (22 mi) wide and is by far the largest island in the territory. The South Sandwich Islands lie about 700 kilometres (430 mi) southeast of South Georgia. The territory's total land area is 3,903 km2 (1,507 sq mi). The Falkland Islands are about 1,300 kilometres (810 mi) west from its nearest point.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Black-browed albatross</span> Large seabird of the albatross family Diomedeidae

The black-browed albatross, also known as the black-browed mollymawk, is a large seabird of the albatross family Diomedeidae; it is the most widespread and common member of its family.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">South Georgia</span> Island in the South Atlantic Ocean

South Georgia is an island in the South Atlantic Ocean that is part of the British Overseas Territory of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands. It lies around 1,400 kilometres (870 mi) east of the Falkland Islands. Stretching in the east–west direction, South Georgia is around 170 kilometres (106 mi) long and has a maximum width of 35 kilometres (22 mi). The terrain is mountainous, with the central ridge rising to 2,935 metres (9,629 ft) at Mount Paget. The northern coast is indented with numerous bays and fjords, serving as good harbours.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gough Island</span> Island in the South Atlantic

Gough Island, also known historically as Gonçalo Álvares, is a rugged volcanic island in the South Atlantic Ocean. It is a dependency of Tristan da Cunha and part of the British overseas territory of Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha. It is approximately 400 km (250 mi) south-east of the Tristan da Cunha archipelago, 2,400 km (1,500 mi) north-east from South Georgia Island, 2,700 km (1,700 mi) west from Cape Town, and over 3,200 km (2,000 mi) from the nearest point of South America.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Campbell Island, New Zealand</span> Island in New Zealand

Campbell Island / Motu Ihupuku is an uninhabited subantarctic island of New Zealand, and the main island of the Campbell Island group. It covers 112.68 square kilometres (43.51 sq mi) of the group's 113.31 km2 (43.75 sq mi), and is surrounded by numerous stacks, rocks and islets like Dent Island, Folly Island, Isle de Jeanette-Marie, and Jacquemart Island, the latter being the southernmost extremity of New Zealand. The island is mountainous, rising to over 500 metres (1,640 ft) in the south. A long fiord, Perseverance Harbour, nearly bisects it, opening out to sea on the east coast.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bird Island, South Georgia</span> Antarctic base in SGSSI, United Kingdom

Bird Island is 4.8 kilometres (3 mi) long and 800 metres (875 yd) wide, separated from the western end of South Georgia by Bird Sound. It is part of the British overseas territory of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands, also claimed by Argentina as part of Tierra del Fuego province.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Scotia Sea</span> Sea in the Southern Ocean

The Scotia Sea is a sea located at the northern edge of the Southern Ocean at its boundary with the South Atlantic Ocean. It is bounded on the west by the Drake Passage and on the north, east, and south by the Scotia Arc, an undersea ridge and island arc system supporting various islands. The sea sits atop the Scotia Plate. It is named after the expedition ship Scotia. Many icebergs melt there.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Grey-headed albatross</span> Species of bird

The grey-headed albatross also known as the gray-headed mollymawk, is a large seabird from the albatross family. It has a circumpolar distribution, nesting on isolated islands in the Southern Ocean and feeding at high latitudes, further south than any of the other mollymawks. Its name derives from its ashy-gray head, throat and upper neck.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fahan School</span> Independent, single-sex school and day school in Sandy Bay, Tasmania, Australia

Fahan School is an independent school for girls located in Sandy Bay, a suburb of Hobart, Tasmania, Australia. It is a non-denominational school with a Christian ethos.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Albatross Island (South Georgia)</span>

Albatross Island is an island 2 miles (3 km) southeast of Cape Buller, lying in the Bay of Isles, South Georgia. Charted in 1912–13 by Robert Cushman Murphy, American naturalist aboard the brig Daisy, who gave this name because he observed albatrosses there. The eastern headland of the island is called The Pricker, a name which first appeared on a 1931 British Admiralty chart.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Schlieper Bay</span> Body of water in Antractica

Schlieper Bay is a bay 1 mile (1.6 km) wide, entered between Romerof Head and Weddell Point along the south coast of South Georgia. It is separated from Church Bay by the Scree Gap. Schlieper Bay was named between 1905 and 1912 after the director of the Compañía Argentina de Pesca.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Prion Island</span>

Prion Island is an island 2.4 km (1.5 mi) north-northeast of Luck Point, lying in the Bay of Isles, South Georgia. It was charted in 1912-13 by Robert Cushman Murphy, American naturalist aboard the brig Daisy, and so named because he observed prions on the island.It has no permanent population due to lack of infrastructure.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">South Georgia pipit</span> Species of bird

The South Georgia pipit is a sparrow-sized bird only found on the South Georgia archipelago off the Antarctic Peninsula. It is the only songbird in Antarctica, South Georgia's only passerine, and one of the few non-seabirds of the region.

Verner Duncan Carse was an English explorer and actor known for surveying South Georgia and for the portrayal of Special Agent Dick Barton on BBC Radio.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Larsen Harbour</span>

Larsen Harbour is a narrow 2.6 miles (4.2 km) long inlet of indenting volcanic rocks and sheeted dykes known as the Larsen Harbour Formation. It is a branch of Drygalski Fjord, entered 2.5 miles (4 km) west-northwest of Nattriss Head, at the southeast end of South Georgia Island. It was charted by the Second German Antarctic Expedition, 1911–12, under Filchner, who named it for Captain Carl Anton Larsen a Norwegian explorer, who made significant contributions to the exploration of Antarctica. The most significant of these was the first discovery of fossils on the continent, for which he received the Back Grant from the Royal Geographical Society. Larsen is also considered the founder of the Antarctic whaling industry and the settlement and whaling station of Grytviken, South Georgia.

Damien Bay is located north-northeast of Hamilton Bay on the southeast coast of South Georgia. It was named after the yacht Damien II, owned by Sally and Jerome Poncet, residents of Beaver Island in the Falkland Islands. The Poncets conducted investigations of the breeding colonies of seals and seabirds around the coastline of South Georgia. The Damien II was chartered by the British Antarctic Survey for various wildlife surveys between 1985 and 1992.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Île de la Possession</span> Largest and only inhabited Crozet Island

Île de la Possession, or Possession Island, formerly Île de la Prise de Possession, is part of the Subantarctic Crozet Archipelago. Administratively, it is part of the French Southern and Antarctic Lands. It is an important nesting site for seabirds.

Donald Alexander Lamont is a retired British diplomat who was Governor of the Falkland Islands and Commissioner for South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands from 1999 to 2002.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Justine Shaw</span> Australian Antarctic researcher

Justine Shaw is an Australian Antarctic researcher, best known for her conservation work on subantarctic islands, currently working at the Queensland University of Technology. She has a wide global research network, having worked in Australia, South Africa, sub-Antarctic/Antarctic and the Arctic.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kim Crosbie</span> Scottish Antarctic scientist

Kim Crosbie is a former Executive Director of the International Association of Antarctica Tour Operators (IAATO) and has been working in the polar regions since 1991.

References

Citations

  1. ↑ Phillips 2007, p. 73.
  2. 1 2 The Guardian 2015.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Brennan, P. 1990.
  4. 1 2 Brennan, B. 1990, pp. 69–70.
  5. 1 2 Byfield 2012, p. 30.
  6. 1 2 3 The Appeal-Democrat 1989, p. 31.
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 6 MercoPress 2015.
  8. ↑ MercoPress 2016.
  9. ↑ Brennan, B. 1990, p. 70.
  10. 1 2 3 South Georgia Newsletter 2010.
  11. ↑ Gosselin 1988, p. 73.
  12. ↑ U.S. Geological Survey 1998.
  13. ↑ MercoPress 2001.
  14. 1 2 Antarctic Research Trust 2016.
  15. 1 2 Neil 2016, p. 114.
  16. ↑ Cooper 2011.
  17. ↑ South Georgia Newsletter 2014.
  18. ↑ Burnett-Stanley 2005.
  19. ↑ MercoPress 2014.
  20. ↑ Cruising Club of America 1992.

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