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title: "ACAP Breeding Site No. 70.  North Foreland, King George Island, Antarctica where Southern Giant Petrels breed on ice-free ground"
---

# ACAP Breeding Site No. 70.  North Foreland, King George Island, Antarctica where Southern Giant Petrels breed on ice-free ground

[North Foreland](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_Foreland_(South_Shetland_Islands))is an ice-free headland on the northern coast of [King George Island](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/King_George_Island_(South_Shetland_Islands)), the largest of the [South Shetland Islands](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_Shetland_Islands) off the Antarctic Peninsula.  It forms the northernmost extremity of the island.

 The headland has been identified as an Important Bird Area ([IBA](http://www.birdlife.org/datazone/sitefactsheet.php?id=29442)) with an area of 151 ha by BirdLife International for its large colony of *c*. 23 000 pairs of Chinstrap Penguins *Pygoscelis antarctica*.![](http://www.acap.aq/images/Northern Foreland KGI T. Guetter 2012_1 s.jpg)

 ![](http://www.acap.aq/images/Northern Foreland KGI T. Guetter 2012_4 s.jpg)

 ![](http://www.acap.aq/images/Northern Foreland KGI T. Guetter 2012_2 s.jpg)

 ![](http://www.acap.aq/images/Northern Foreland KGI T. Guetter 2012_3 s.jpg)

 ACAP-listed Southern Giant Petrels *Macronectes giganteus* breed on the headland on rocky ice-free ground.  A visit on 13 February 2012 by Tobias Guetter yielded a count of 279 nests thought to have been used in the current season and 128 chicks in 23 breeding groups (range 1-50 nests).  Of these totals five nests with one chick were recorded as being on an island.

 A total of 248 pairs was recorded in 1966, suggesting a level of stability for this [Least Concern](http://www.birdlife.org/datazone/speciesfactsheet.php?id=3870)species.

 With thanks to Christina Braun and Tobias Guetter, both of the University of Jena, Germany, for information and photographs.

 **Selected Literature:**

 Patterson, D.L., Woehler, E.J., Croxall, J.P., Cooper, J., Poncet, S., Peter, H.-U., Hunter, S. & Fraser, M.W. 2008.  Breeding distribution and population status of the Northern Giant Petrel *Macronectes halli* and Southern Giant Petrel *M. giganteus*.  [Marine Ornithology 36: 115-124](http://marineornithology.org/PDF/36_2/36_2_115-124.pdf) and [appendix](http://www.marineornithology.org/abs/36_2/36_2_115-124_appendices.pdf).

 Peter, H.-U., Kaiser, M. & Gebauer, A. 1991.  Breeding ecology of the southern giant petrels *Macronectes giganteus* on King George Island (South Shetland Islands, Antarctic).  *Zoologisches Jahrbuch Systematik* 118: 465-477.

 *John Cooper, ACAP Information Officer, 01 May 2014*