--- title: "UPDATED: YACHT ARRIVES. Eradicating Gough Island’s albatross-killing mice will lead to an academic meeting ashore" --- # UPDATED: YACHT ARRIVES. Eradicating Gough Island’s albatross-killing mice will lead to an academic meeting ashore **UPDATE:**  The [*Pelagic Australis*](http://www.pelagic.co.uk/fleet_pa.asp) arrived at Gough Island on 10 March after a nine-day voyage from Cape Town and safely landed its members of the GIRP team ashore. ![GIRP V2 Pelagic Australis 1](https://www.acap.aq/images/stories/acap/People/GIRP_V2_Pelagic_Australis_1.jpg) *The*Pelagic Australis*about to leave Cape Town Harbour for Gough Island with the second GIRP team aboard, Chris Jones and Michelle Risi centre, Peter Ryan right; photograph by the RSPB* A second sailing of the [*Pelagic Australis*](http://www.pelagic.co.uk/fleet_pa.asp) that left Cape Town yesterday for [Gough Island](https://www.acap.aq/news/news-archive/60-2013-news-archive/1322-acap-breeding-sites-no-11-gough-island-south-atlantic-hanging-on-against-the-onslaught-of-its-killer-mice) follows the [first of last month](https://www.acap.aq/latest-news/3945-the-covid-19-delayed-eradication-of-house-mice-on-gough-gets-going-again-with-the-first-sailing-of-the-year-to-the-island) with more team members of the United Kingdom’s Gough Island Restoration Programme ([GIRP](https://www.goughisland.com/)) aboard, following two weeks of quarantine to ensure their being COVID-19 free.  GIRP aims to eradicate the island’s House Mice that have taken to attacking and killing breeding albatrosses and petrels, including the [Critically Endangered](http://datazone.birdlife.org/species/factsheet/tristan-albatross-diomedea-dabbenena/text) and near-endemic Tristan Albatross *Diomedea dabbenena*. [latest-news/3945-the-covid-19-delayed-eradication-of-house-mice-on-gough-gets-going-again-with-the-first-sailing-of-the-year-to-the-island](https://www.acap.aq/latest-news/3945-the-covid-19-delayed-eradication-of-house-mice-on-gough-gets-going-again-with-the-first-sailing-of-the-year-to-the-island)Along with members of GIRP aboard the yacht is [Peter Ryan](http://www.fitzpatrick.uct.ac.za/fitz/staff/director/ryan), Director of the University of Cape Town’s [FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology](http://www.fitzpatrick.uct.ac.za/).  Peter is an old Gough Island hand having first visited the island to conduct research on the impact of plastic ingestion on Great Shearwaters *Ardenna gravis* towards his MSc (along with ACAP’s Information Officer) way back in 1984.  With him on the yacht is his erstwhile postgraduate student [Chris Jones](https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Christopher-Jones-37), who graduated with an [MSc](https://open.uct.ac.za/handle/11427/29646?show=full) in 2018 following a study of Gough’s prions *Pachyptila*spp. Also aboard is Michelle Risi, a member of ACAP’s World Albatross Day Group (and designer of the [‘WAD2021’ suite of posters](https://www.acap.aq/world-albatross-day/wad2021-ensuring-albatross-friendly-fisheries/world-albatross-day-2021-logos-posters/3927-wad-2021-posters) of Critically Endangered albatrosses).  Michelle has already spent three tours of service on Gough working for GIRP monitoring the island’s seabirds – two of them consecutive years – along with husband, Chris Jones. ![Gough 2020 GIRP teams](https://www.acap.aq/images/stories/acap/People/Gough_2020_GIRP_teams.jpg) *From left: Vonica Perold, Roelf Daling, Kim Stevens, Michelle Risi, Alexis Osborne and Chris Jones on Gough Island in 2020* When they arrive on the island they will meet up with GIRP member [Alexis Osborne](http://www.fitzpatrick.uct.ac.za/fitz/students/masters/osborne), who sailed last month with the first team.  Alexis is another of Peter’s past MSc students, having graduated in 2020 for a study of [moult in allbatrosses and giant petrels](https://www.acap.aq/latest-news/3757-understanding-moult-patterns-in-albatrosses-and-petrels-breeding-on-marion-and-gough-islands-msc-awarded-to-alexis-osborne?highlight=WyJvc2Jvcm5lIl0=) that included information collected on Gough.  And already [on the island since last year](https://www.acap.aq/latest-news/3831-house-mouse-eradication-on-gough-island-now-planned-for-next-year-as-the-field-team-changes?highlight=WyJ2b25pY2EiXQ==) are two more of Peter’s students, [Vonica Perold](http://www.fitzpatrick.uct.ac.za/fitz/students/doctoral/perold)and [Kim Stevens](http://www.fitzpatrick.uct.ac.za/fitz/students/doctoral/stevens), both working towards their PhDs.  With no less than five marine ornithologists linked to the ‘Fitztitute’ together on the island later this month *ACAP Latest News* is sensing a photo opportunity! ![Kim and Von weigh seal pups Roelf Daling](https://www.acap.aq/images/stories/acap/People/Kim_and_Von_weigh_seal_pups_Roelf_Daling.jpg) *Kim Stevens (left) and Von Perold weigh Subantarctic Fur Seal*Arctocephalus tropicalis*pups on Gough Island, photograph by Roelf Daling* [world-albatross-day/wad2021-ensuring-albatross-friendly-fisheries/world-albatross-day-2021-logos-posters/3927-wad-2021-posters](https://www.acap.aq/world-albatross-day/wad2021-ensuring-albatross-friendly-fisheries/world-albatross-day-2021-logos-posters/3927-wad-2021-posters)![Gough 1984](https://www.acap.aq/images/stories/acap/People/Gough_1984.jpg) *A blast from the past: a young (and exuberant) Peter Ryan (left) with colleagues on Gough Island in 1984.  ACAP’s Information Officer is on the right; in between them are Barry Watkins, Stevi Broni and the late Jim Enticott* With thanks to Michelle Risi, Peter Ryan and Antje Steinfurth. *John Cooper, ACAP Information Officer, 03 March 2021, updated 11 March 2021*