Close to 2,000 bird enthusiasts descended on Durban Harbour, excitement at fever pitch as they prepared to embark on a voyage to Marion Island — all eager to witness the magnificent albatrosses in their wild ocean domain.
This voyage presented a wonderful opportunity for the JVBBF Trust (John Voelcker Bird Book Fund) to support a truly worthy cause and promote our latest publication: a coffee-table book on sunbirds and sugarbirds. We donated five copies to the on-board live auction event in aid of the Mouse-Free Marion Project — two of them generously contributed by the delightful Peter Harrison, renowned global seabird expert.
But… “a funny thing happened on the way to Marion.”
The five books, carefully packed for loading, somehow managed to fall into Durban Harbour.
Days later, blissfully unaware of this catastrophe, I was called over to the BirdLife desk by Tarryn McKechnie (BirdLife South Africa) and Tarryn Havemann (Mouse-Free Marion). With matching looks of dismay, they broke the news:
“We’re so terribly sorry, but the Trust’s box of donated books fell into the harbour.”
“You’re joking!” I said, grinning, convinced it was a tasteless prank.
The two Tarryns exchanged distressed glances and pointed to a counter behind them, where a forlorn row of soggy, open books lay drying — in vain. This was no joke. All the books were beyond redemption. In shock, I realised we’d have to scramble to salvage the situation. But how?
With less than 24 hours before the major live auction, the Trust committed to replacing the damaged books. That got the ball rolling. Then came a request: could the replacement copy include a handwritten inscription describing — in prose — the calamity?
No pressure, I thought, as the person tasked with writing it!
Finally, we asked Mark Anderson to serve as auctioneer.
At best, I hoped the tale might inspire a ‘compassion bid’ — maybe R1,000 if we were lucky.
That night, on stage and in a show of confident optimism, Mark read out the inscription:
“MSC Flock to Marion Island 2025
Accidentally ‘baptised’ warm waters of the Indian Ocean,
Salvaged & brought to the icy waters of the Southern Ocean,
Donation purchased ‘voetstoots’ for Mouse Free Marion,
In appreciation, Ingrid Weiersbye (JVBBF)“
I watched in disbelief as the bidding escalated… and the hammer eventually fell at R15,000.
Birds bring us together in extraordinary ways. And so it was that the great Wandering Albatrosses, soaring around us in their element, spiritually moved a farming couple from a remote corner of the Great Karoo. So much so, that a waterlogged book on sunbirds still managed — against all odds — to contribute meaningfully to the immensely worthy cause of Mouse-Free Marion. Ingrid Weiersbye
