Feeding on the phytoplankton are Zooplankton, which attract an abundance of shoaling pelagic fish and this is the reason why southern Africa is home to one of the richest seabird communities in the world.

The birds' guano also provide nutrients that flow back into the surrounding sea when large waves hit the island or when it rains.

The guano enriches the rocky shore with carpets of seaweed grazed by goat's-eye limpets, which are predated by spiny starfish.

[2] The island was once used for sealing and following a visit in 1828 by Captain Benjamin Morrell and the discovery of bird manure to depths of more than 7 m, the focus turned to the quarrying of guano.

The value was so great that competition was fierce; murder was committed over harvesting rights, and two British warships were dispatched to restore order over what became known as the ′Great Guano War′.

The wall was built to prevent winds blowing the guano into the sea and has a few entry points for penguins’ to access the breeding areas.

The island holds 65% of the world's endangered, Cape cormorant (Phalacrocorax capensis), despite the global population falling from 9,000 to less than 5,000 pairs over twenty years.

Ichaboe also has large numbers of endangered African penguin (Spheniscus demersus) and the bank cormorant (Phalacrocorax neglectus), as well as the vulnerable Cape gannet (Morus capensis).