Aitutaki, Cook Islands
Upon visiting the islands of the South Pacific and meeting the locals we have learned of the arrival and movement of the early Polynesians; traveling and settling new islands via their ocean-going canoes and superb navigation skills. We have learned of the more recent arrival of Europeans and their movement through the islands. And through National Geographic’s Genographic Project and our onboard expert Dr. Spencer Wells, we have learned how the migration of humans over the last 50,000 years has been studied on a global scale by the analysis of our DNA.
On the white-sand beaches (built by generations of parrotfishes) of these islands we have found shorebirds such as the Pacific golden plover (pictured) or the rare bristle-thighed curlews on Takutea yesterday. These birds breed in the high-Arctic, so at this time of year typically these birds would be on their high-Arctic breeding grounds. But each year a few birds, whether immature or non-breeding adults, decide not to undertake the amazing 6,000 mile one-way non-stop flight and stay in the South Pacific where we have found them.
And off the coast of Aitutake today we encountered humpback whales. During the austral winter these animals swim from the rich and productive waters of Antarctica, where they feed during the austral summer, to the warm waters of the Cook Islands where they give birth and mate.
All told, there are a remarkably diverse set of origins for just some of the people and wildlife of these remote islands; adding depth and sense of wonder to the beauty of our journey through them.
Upon visiting the islands of the South Pacific and meeting the locals we have learned of the arrival and movement of the early Polynesians; traveling and settling new islands via their ocean-going canoes and superb navigation skills. We have learned of the more recent arrival of Europeans and their movement through the islands. And through National Geographic’s Genographic Project and our onboard expert Dr. Spencer Wells, we have learned how the migration of humans over the last 50,000 years has been studied on a global scale by the analysis of our DNA.
On the white-sand beaches (built by generations of parrotfishes) of these islands we have found shorebirds such as the Pacific golden plover (pictured) or the rare bristle-thighed curlews on Takutea yesterday. These birds breed in the high-Arctic, so at this time of year typically these birds would be on their high-Arctic breeding grounds. But each year a few birds, whether immature or non-breeding adults, decide not to undertake the amazing 6,000 mile one-way non-stop flight and stay in the South Pacific where we have found them.
And off the coast of Aitutake today we encountered humpback whales. During the austral winter these animals swim from the rich and productive waters of Antarctica, where they feed during the austral summer, to the warm waters of the Cook Islands where they give birth and mate.
All told, there are a remarkably diverse set of origins for just some of the people and wildlife of these remote islands; adding depth and sense of wonder to the beauty of our journey through them.
