3. Guano (via Spanish), is the excrement of seabirds, cave-
dwelling bats, pinnipeds or birds in general. As a manure,
guano is a highly effective fertilizer due to its
exceptionally high content of nitrogen phosphate and
potassium nutrients essential for plant growth.
The 19th century, Guano trade played a pivotal role in the
development of modern farming practices and inspired
the formal human colonization of remote bird islands in
many parts of the world.
During the twentieth century, Guano-producing birds
became an important target of conservation programs
and influenced the development of environmental
INTRODUCTION
5. In November 1802, Alexander von Humboldt was the first European
to encounter Guano and began investigating its fertilizing
properties at Callao in Peru.
During the 19th century Guano boom, the vast majority of seabird
guano was harvested from Peruvian guano islands.
Large quantities were also exported from the Caribbean, in the
Central Pacific and islands off the coast of Namibia, Oman,
Patagonia, and California. At that time, massive deposits of guano
existed on some islands, in some cases more than 50 m deep.
In 1856, the United States passed the Guano Islands Act, which
gave U.S. citizens discovering guano on an unclaimed island
exclusive rights to the deposits. Nine of these islands are still
officially U.S. territories.
6. SOURCING
๏ The ideal type of guano is found in exceptionally dry climates, as rainwater
drains the guano of nitrates. Guano is harvested on various islands in the
Pacific Ocean. These islands have been home to mass seabird colonies for
many centuries, and the guano has collected to a depth of many metres. In
the 19th century, Peru was famous for its supply of Guano.
๏ Bat guano is usually mined in caves. Guano deposits support a great variety
of cave-adapted invertebrates, that rely on bat feces as their sole source of
nutrition. In addition to the biological component, deep guano deposits in
strata have built up over thousands of years.
๏ The greatest damage caused by mining to caves with extensive guano
deposits is to the bat colonies. Bats are highly vulnerable to regular
disturbance to their roosts.
๏ Some species, which have low fat reserves, starve to death when regularly
disturbed and put into a panic state during their resting period. Many
species drop pups when in panic, with subsequent death, leading to a
steady reduction in population. Research in Jamaica has shown that mining
for bat guano is directly related to the loss of bat species, associated
invertebrates and fungi, and is the greatest threat to bat caves on the island.
8. PROPERTIES
In Agriculture and Gardening, Guano has a number of
uses, which includes :
a. Soil Builder,
b. Lawn treatment,
c. Fungicide (when fed to plants through the leaves),
d. Nematicide (decomposing microbes help control
nematodes), and as
e. Composting activator (nutrients and microbes speed
up decomposition)
10. The Guano Islands is full of history and biodiversity.
Before the invention of synthetic fertilizers, guano from
bird droppings was an essential agricultural
fertilizer. Peru was the biggest producer in the world, due
to the large nesting bird population of the Humboldt,
Current and the arid climateยดs ability to preserve the
guano.
After over-exploitation, the government took over &
managed guano production for 100 years, monitoring the
bird populations and rotating guano extraction through
the islands every few years. In order to augment the
population of sea birds, walls were built around isolated
capes to restrict access and movement of people near
nesting areas.
11. ๏ Joseph Victor von Scheffels 'Guanosong' described the
development of the manure in humouristic poetic
verses in the middle of the 19th century.
๏ The poem starts with highly sophisticated wording
and allegations to Heinric Heines Lorelei and may be
sung along the same tunes, as from 1837 by Friedrich
Silcher.
๏ The poem ends however with the grunt statement of a
Swabian rapeseed farmer, which praises the seagulls,
providing better 'birdshitโ.
๏ It has been translated among others by Charles
Godfrer Leland
12. I wish to thank my Teacher and Parents to have
helped me gather information and understand
the basics of Guano Islands.
The information on Guano Islands has been
taken from the Internet.
Thank Youโฆ..
