Cameron Tiller (Johnstone Centre, Charles Sturt University, Albury, Australia) and colleagues writing in the open-access journal Marine Ornithology report on the effects of heavy rain on Short-tailed Puffinus tenuirostris and Wedge-tailed P. pacificus Shearwaters breeding on Montague Island, New South Wales, Australia.

“This paper highlights the value of long-term studies in revealing rare or irregular events in ecology, although more intensive short-term studies may be required to analyse the effect of specific factors.”

Short-tailed Shearwater, photographed by Mark Carey

Reference:

Tiller, C.J., Klomp, N.I., Fullagar, P.J. & Heyligers, P.C.  2013.  Catastrophic breeding failure caused by heavy rainfall in a shearwater colony.  Marine Ornithology 41: 97-99.

John Cooper, ACAP Information Officer, 28 July 2013