For humans, life on the Rock has never been easy. Whether as a citadel, prison, or native settlement, Alcatraz Island harbors a long and layered history of human hardship.
Yet for birds, life on the Rock couldn't be easier. The 22-acre island has become a home for thousands of seabirds like egrets, herons, cormorants, seagulls, and even a few geese! It would appear that birds, and not people, were meant to run this Rock.
Alcatraz History
The Ohlone: Alcatraz was a place of human isolation 10,000 years before Europeans set their sights on it. Occupied first by the Ohlone, the island was used as a punitive measure to isolate those who went against tribal laws. It was in 1775 that Spanish explorer Juan Manuel de Ayala sailed into the bay and gave the Rock its (other) famous name: Alcatraces, Island of the Pelicans. Foreshadowing? I think so.
The Military Base: Alcatraz didn't begin to see construction until the 1850s when the army fashioned the island into a military outpost. Equipped with 100 cannons, the site was supposed to serve as an important defense unit in the bay... except that never happened. As the Civil War came to a close and the cannons lay silent (not fired even once) it became apparent that the fog-shrouded Rock was destined for a different purpose altogether: to become the famous penitentiary it's known for today.
The Penitentiary: For a 21st-century person, going to and from the island is simple; you hop on a boat that takes you across the bay, go on a self-guided tour, and then boat back on home. For a prisoner in the 1900s, it was not so easy. Tough iron bars, rough frigid waters, and deadly strict rules made escape nearly impossible. Out of the 1576 men condemned to the island, 36 tried to escape. All but 3 were caught or died. This meant that most inmates sent to Alcatraz shared the same fate; the rest of their lives would be spent in a rectangle on a Rock.
Ironically, what made Alcatraz so valuable also made it quite burdensome. The astronomical cost of shipping goods to sustain people on the lonesome island ultimately led to the prison closing its doors in 1963.
The Red Power Movement: The last attempt to habituate Alcatraz was in 1969 when a group of Indigenous Americans settled on the island to protest Native rights. Adopting the name "United Indians of All Tribes," their goal was to bring attention to the challenges facing Native peoples and create a thriving, new community. Although supported by the public, the settlement did not last long as the lack of leadership broke the group apart.
So, Alcatraz was abandoned in 1971. Or was it?
The new residents of Alcatraz
Human abandonment is the first step in wild reclamation. The frigid waters, rocky terrain, and remote wilderness that made Alcatraz inhospitable for people are the same characteristics that support thriving seabird colonies today. Birds like the Brandt’s Cormorant, Pigeon Guillemot, Western Gull, and Snowy Egret have settled on the island to nest, feed, and raise their young- among the 1.4 million tourists that visit every year. How can this be?
How have birds been so Successful?
Avians on Alcatraz doesn't make sense on paper. Seabird colonies like to nest in remote places. To settle on one of California's most popular tourist attractions hardly makes sense. And yet?
This avian success story is built on human history- literally. Dilapidated buildings have provided areas to nest. Empty guard towers have furnished places to sunbathe. Towers of rubble have created tide pools to hunt. Birds have adapted human infrastructure to fit their needs. It is an amazing example of Nature's perseverance.
The Park Service also plays an important role in ensuring the success and safety of Alcatraz's birds. During the nesting season, February through September, parts of the island are closed to minimize disturbance to breeding pairs and their chicks. Volunteers are also stationed throughout the island to answer any bird-related questions you may have.
From Abanadoned to Biodiverse
Alcatraz is not the first wild reclamation of its kind. In the absence of people, places like Chornobyl, the DMZ, and Centralia have become bustling wildlife sanctuaries, supporting an incredible diversity of species. At this point, the important question is not how these wild hotspots came to be but how we can maintain them. Luckily for us, the answer is simple. We just need to stay away.
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