On the trip to Antarctica I came the first time in touch with the South Georgia Islands. Even we did not visit them, I gained a much better understanding of polar and sub-polar ecosystems and the interest is even growing since back. One of the most interesting projects I heard of in this context is the rat-eradication program on South Georgia. This stands in context with the introduction of rats as a foreign species by whalers and early settlers which are disturbing the ecological balance significantly and by feeding on bird's eggs pose a fatal threat to the unique wildlife.

The solution brought forward by the South Georgia Heritage Trust is to poison the rat population by dropping baits from 2 helicopters. The plan takes advantage of the current glacier structure which did not allow the rats yet to spread over all the land. But as the glaciers are withdrawing as an effect of global warming, there is high time to kill every single rat on the island before these natural barriers leak and provide an unfrozen land connecttion for the rats to spread further.

The projects has two Bolkow-105-Helicopters in service and you might imagine the cost involved in this kind of habitat restoration. This is why the South Geogrgia Heritage Trust is grateful for any financial aids. More information and also the chance to donate online, you find on their website.