EPOW - Ecology Picture of the Week

Loneliest Natural Monument

Los Pingüinos Natural Monument
Magdalena Island, Punta Arenas, Chile

Explanation:  On a flight from Puerto Varas to Punta Arenas, in the southern corner of the Southern Cone of South America, I spotted what must be the loneliest of natural monuments in the world.  

This is Magdalena Island, situated in the Strait of Magellen.  

This tiny island -- just one square kilometer, with one boat dock and one dirt road leading to the red-roofed sole structure and lighthouse (can you spot it in the photo?) -- constitutes the seasonal home of over 120,000 Magellanic penguins.  

Conserved as a natural environment, the avian denizens are what give rise to the name Monumento Natural Los Pingüinos:  The Penguins Natural Monument.

According to a recent study (Bingham 2020), Magellanic penguins suffered a severe drought in 2009 that devastated much of the population on the island where the birds nest in burrows.  The burrows became unsuitable for habitations, and much of the population likely left the island and moved to a nearby colony in Argentina.  Subsequently, the penguins on Magdalena Island seem to be rebounding.  

Information:
     Bingham, M.  2020.  Magellanic penguin (Spheniscidae) monitoring results for Magdalena island (Chile) and cabo Virgenes (Argentina): 2000 - 2019.  Anales del Instituto de la Patagonia 48(1): http://dx.doi.org/10.4067/S0718-686X2020000100027.