From a distance , it looked as if the vessel tied up at Townsville was named the African Queen , bringing back memories of tough guy Humphrey Bogart and sultry Katharine Hepburn . Then , drawing closer, it became clear that it was the African Macaw , a sturdy bulk carrier , not a flimsy tramp steamer run by a gin soaked skipper. In days when there were people called shipping reporters who kept a close watch on the waterfront , hanging out in pubs frequented by nautical types and femmes , the arrival in port of a ship with a catchy name like this would result in a colourful newspaper story.
As pointed out previously in this seasick blog , Noah's Ark could sail into Townsville and the local media would not notice . Recently we reported the arrival of a ship named ROOK , which went unnoticed by the media landlubbers .
Just a wee bit of research on the African Macaw revealed that it is part of a large fleet of vessels , registered in the Bahamas, all named over birds (preceded by African )-Eagle, Baza , Blue Crane, Dove, Egret , Falcon , Gannet, Goshawk, Griffon, Grouse, Halcyon, Harrier, Hawk, Heron, Hornbill , Ibis , Jay , Kestrel, Kite , Lark, the above name vessel ,Merlin, Osprey, Owl, Pelican, Piper, Raptor, Raven , Robin , Rook (not related to the aforementioned Rook ) , Sanderling, Starling, Swan , Tern, Toucan , Raven, Wagtail and Weaver .
Now add the Greek legend of the Argonauts , the band of seafarers who went with Jason in the good ship Argo looking for the Golden Fleece (Merino?) to this flighty yarn . All these fine feathered vessels , said to be modern and environmentally friendly , are owned by Argonautica Shipping Investments B. V. , Amsterdam.
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On the same day as the African Macaw was in port, this yacht was spotted on its side in the Magnetic Island marina .Could be a story here.
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