First light in the world - November 7th

The seabirds have been up for hours, making their loud trumpet noises under the hut and when I go outside the ground is crawling with them. It is 5:30 am and I’m getting involved in Mel’s research well and truly this time. It is my turn to set up a camera to film a robin’s nest for the first six hours of the day and I need to be across the island by sunrise.

The seabirds are truly clumsy on the ground. Their fat bodies wobble from side to side and they stumble often, sticking out a wing every few steps to hold themselves upright. The interesting thing is that they cannot take off without wind, so every morning they must make this painfully slow exodus through the forest until they reach the shore, or at least a decent take-off tree that they can climb with beak and claw until they have a breeze to lift them into the air.
I take a short cut around the coast and as usual the skuas want to scratch my eyes out for venturing onto their turf. But this time of day, they are torn between chasing me and the rich hunting to be had as the slow, grounded birds emerge from the bush. In the end they leave a titi, or sooty shearwater, wounded and crumpled on the rocks to dive at my head before going back to finish their breakfast. The sooties don’t make it difficult for the skuas. They all come out at one spot, queuing up and taking off one by one. I can see them all peering forward from their spot in the line as if I am a bank teller and they are wondering what the hold up is.

Back in the forest, I locate the tripod that we set up yesterday and start to film the nest. It is nearly 6:30, the others will be getting up in the hut and the kettle will be boiling. It is definitely time for a good cup of tea! I wait just a little to watch the rest of the sunrise – so strange to think that this is the very first light of today anywhere in the whole world and I am the first one to see it!