Mutton Bird-Fouke.

The fouke, or mutton-bird (wedge-tailed Shearwater) was a delicacy among the islanders. It is now protected under the Wild Animals and Birds Protection Act and is illegal to harvest the bird.

Mutton Bird- Fouke

The Creole name fouke is derived from the French fouquet, a term used by French sailors for petrels and dating back to 1689. It is also referred to as fouke dezile to distinguish it from other related species. The scientific family name comes from the Latin Procella, meaning the storm , probably referring to the fact that these birds are often seen at sea, gliding over the waves during stormy weather. It is a migratory bird, breeds in burrows on some of the smaller islands and it is the chicks, the flesh of which are very fat, oily and tender, that were collected to be salted. Each burrow would hold only one chick as the bird lays only one egg. Fouke was a source of protein in the early days of settlement up to about the 1970s.

Shearwater in flight- Fouke pe envole

My memories of fouke harvesting.

I hold some precious memories of the hunt for the chicks in my younger days on Cousin Island where my dad, Maxime, was the administrator. We had three methods of extracting the chicks from their burrows. The first way was to use our two ‘hunter dogs’. Simba was a big dog and he would widen the burrows so that a smaller dog could get into the burrows and bring out the chicks. Both of them would end up with scratched nose as a result of the aggressive defence from the chicks that have strong and sharp beaks.

The second method used was for us to lie on the ground and, with our right hand, reach into the nest chamber to catch and carefully manoeuvre the chick out, enduring painful bites in the process.

The third and far less painful method was to use a special tall reed which we would insert in the burrows. The chicks would attack the reed and bite on the end and will not let go, and we could judge by the weight of the chicks at the end of the reed whether they were ready or not.

The Preparation of the Meat

Once the chicks were removed from their burrows, they were quickly killed and pressure was applied to the abdomen so that they regurgitate their stomach oil and contents. This is to prevent the stomach oil from soiling the feathers. The oil solidifies at room temperature and makes the plucking difficult.

Shearwater Chicks- Pti Fouke

The next process was the plucking which was done as soon as the chicks were caught because the feathers are easier to remove while the birds are still warm. The plucking process started by dipping the dead chicks for a few seconds in a barrel of boiling water. This greatly facilitated the plucking of the feathers and the fine downs and pin feathers resulting in a clean white body.

The clean chick were hung for a small period and would then be split longitudinally through the breast bone and internal organs removed. The liver was kept and cooked and everything else was discarded. The birds would then be opened flat and pressed for a few hours before they were salted. They would then be stored in drums and would easily last for one year.

Mutton bird is available in Australia where it is harvested by the aboriginals under strict regulations.