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Publication
Changes and consistencies in marine and coastal bird numbers on Kidney Island (Falkland Islands) over half a century
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Advisor(s)
Abstract(s)
Detecting change is necessary for effective ecosystem management, yet temporal data on key ecosystem components are
lacking for many polar and subpolar regions. For example, although the Falkland Islands hosts internationally important
marine and coastal bird populations, few of these were surveyed until the late twentieth century. The avifauna of one small
island, Kidney Island, was surveyed between 1958 and 1963, however. This typical tussac-covered island has remained free
of non-native predators, so changes in its avifauna may reflect variation in the wider marine environment. In order to obtain a
rare snapshot of such changes, we re-surveyed Kidney Island’s avifauna between 2017 and 2019, counting either individuals,
breeding pairs or nest sites of marine and coastal waterbirds. Waterfowl, waders and cormorant populations were broadly
stable, but several populations showed profound differences over the six decades between surveys. In particular, Southern
Rockhopper penguins Eudyptes chrysocome collapsed from > 3000 to 200 pairs, while Sooty Shearwaters Ardenna grisea
expanded by two orders of magnitude. Due to its isolation and tight fisheries management, the Falklands marine environment
is assumed to be relatively pristine. Our limited results suggest that sufficient changes may nevertheless have occurred in the
region’s marine ecosystem to have detectable impacts on breeding seabirds.
Description
Keywords
Kelp Goose Falkland Steamer duck Rockhopper penguin Ardenna gravis Haematopus ater Falkland Islands
Citation
Polar Biology, 42(11), 1-6. Doi: 10.1007/s00300-019-02587-0
Publisher
Springer Verlag