The stunning kingfisher was spotted in March 2013 on Picard Island by Calum Ferguson, Arjan de Groene and Christina Quanz. The staff had the luck to have their cameras ready and took several shots of the bird which later helped the experts to distinguish it from the similar African Malachite Kingfisher. It is not clear from the pictures whether the bird originates from the Comoros or Madagascar, which host separate races, but it appears to belong to the nominate Madagascar race. The sighting will also be featured in the next issue of the Bulletin of the African Bird Club and on the SBRC website. Many thanks to Adrian Skerrett of the SBRC for confirming the identification.

 What you need to know if you want to visit Aldabra?

The policy

Aldabra is a strict nature reserve and visitors to the atoll must receive authorisation from SIF (Seychelles Islands Foundation). Request for authorisation can be made by contacting the SIF head office on the contact details provided.
The SIF policy on tourism at Aldabra is to increase the revenue raised by the SIF in order to support the protection and conservation of the atoll through limited and strictly controlled tourism with a focus on nature tourism and education.
Tourism activities are limited to the following operations:

    Small to medium size cruise ship tourism.
    Live-aboard charter boats and private yachts.
    Live-aboard dive boats.
    Land-based educational and scientific visits limited to 12 persons at any one time.

Access by a visitor to various parts of Aldabra is limited to the areas defined in the zoning policy and is conducted in a sustainable manner with impact being continually assessed.
Visitors are not allowed to collect shells or to damage or interfere with the plants and animals. No biological or geological specimen can be collected by any visitor. Visitors are also required to abide by sanitary measures to avoid introducing alien plant seeds.
All visitors to Aldabra must at all times be accompanied by an Aldabra staff member. It is not permitted to wander about unsupervised.

Getting there

Aldabra is normally accessible from the main Island of Mahé through a bi-monthly supply boat belonging to the Islands Development Company (IDC). Otherwise, a plane can be hired from the same company to Assumption. Transfer from Assumption to Aldabra and vice versa would need to be arranged on a specially chartered boat.

A visitor can also hire his/her own yacht on Mahé to visit Aldabra after receiving the authorisation from the Seychelles Islands Foundation and the Seychelles Port Authority.
With the obvious exceptions of cruise ships, private charter boats and private yachts, all other tourism access is dependent upon air connections between Mahé and Assumption and subsequent boat connections to Aldabra. While the SIF may assist with such arrangements if the supply boat is in the area, it is not SIF policy to be involved in the establishment of the boat connection between Assumption and Aldabra.

Fees payable
All visitors are required to pay various fees for each day that they remain at Aldabra.
For professional photographers and journalists a photography/filming fee will be applied for still photography and cine/video photography.

For further information on these fees please contact SIF on info@sif.sc

 Donate now!
The SIF is helping to preserve the two Natural World Heritage sites of outstanding beauty donated to humanity by the people of Seychelles. These natural sites contain unique ecosystems and species of outstanding examples of a major stage in the evolutionary history of Earth.
Donating to the preservation of the Vallée de Mai on Praslin and Aldabra will give you the personal satisfaction of knowing you have directly contributed to providing essential funding for conservation initiatives that have been identified as needing the most support. If you would like to make a donation or get further information then please contact: info@sif.sc

If you wish to contribute towards enhancing the technical and financial capacities of the Seychelles Islands Foundation, your contribution would be welcome. Donations can be material, equipment or financial means. You may identify a project or activity towards which you wish the donation is used for. Material donations could be done by writing to the Seychelles Islands Foundation on the address in the contact details.
Financial donations can be done through the Seychelles Islands Foundation by contacting the CEO (SIF) on the address at the end of the article.

Tourism regulations for Aldabra

All vessels must have clearance in writing from the SIF head office and the Seychelles Port Authority before visiting Aldabra. Vessels approaching Aldabra must identify themselves and when within one kilometre of the shore will be answerable to the Island Management of Aldabra. The vessel should select its anchorage or mooring within view of the research station and do so in an environmentally responsible way. Vessels should use mooring buoys if these are available. Access to the lagoon and landing on any part of the atoll other than in designated tourism areas is prohibited.

- Visiting vessels must remove all rubbish occasioned by their visit.

- All visitors must be accompanied by SIF staff at all times, except within the station grounds. Tour operator guides who are familiar with Aldabra and SIF policies, and have been vetted by SIF, may be allowed to lead small groups on permitted trails on Picard.

- Visitors are to remain on designated trails or when in open areas, within the limits set by their guide.

- Visitors, particularly film crews, must comply with their guide’s instructions regarding approaches to and viewing of animals and plants.

- Aldabra is a strict nature reserve. It is prohibited to remove shells or pieces of coral from any area visited.

- No biological or geological specimen, alive or dead, may be collected by any visitor.

- Fishing is not permitted within one kilometre from the shoreline. All boat operators should ensure that this restriction is conveyed to all their crew.

Accidental introductions of alien species are a major problem in wilderness areas like Aldabra. Passengers and crew of cruise ships and charter boats are asked to assist in the prevention of this problem by always ensuring that they wear freshly laundered trousers and socks, and that their shoes have clean treads.