30 Oct 2015

Vanikoro

Our last day in the Solomon Islands was spent on Vanikolo. This impressive island rises in great green faces to a towering peak which dominates the landscape surrounded by a nearly all encompassing barrier reef. We made our way to a protected anchorage where we could set the birders ashore to search for and eventually find the Vanikoro Monarch, Flycatcher and White-eye.

The rest of us spent a lovely morning at the village of Usili where the resident extended family demonstrated the arts of fire lighting, bow and arrow making, basket weaving and breadfruit cooking. Afterwards a wander through the forest revealed some well tended gardens and beautiful trees including a towering Banyan Tree. Later in the morning we snorkelled amongst a wide variety of fish species but the highlights were sightings of a Black-tipped Reef Shark and a small group of yet to be identified cephlapods.

During the afternoon we Zodiac cruised through the mangroves and visited the cenotaph to Le Perouse before continuing along the coast of Tevai to the village of Buma where the locals welcomed us and demonstrated the traditional mask dance of Vanikolo. We have now said farewell to the Solomon Islands and tomorrow we enter Vanuatu waters and begin our search for the Vanuatu Petrel.