The Mouse-Free Marion (MFM) Project is working to eradicate the introduced House Mice Mus musculus that have taken to attacking and killing albatrosses and petrels on South Africa’s sub-Antarctic Marion Island. Last week, the MFM Project released the 7th issue of its Quarterly Newsletter.

Leaping into spring on Marion Island. From left “birders” (ornithological researchers) Chris Jones, Mpumelelo Mabutyana, Michelle Risi and Kyle Maurer get airborne; photograph from Michelle Risi

In this latest issue you can read:

A Welcome Editorial by MFM Project Manager Anton Wolfaardt on the reasons why the eradication exercise is now set to take place in the austral winter of 2026 (read more on the postponemement here).

Announcement of three new International Patrons to join His Royal Highness the Duke of Edinburgh and seabird author and illustrator Peter Harrison MBE. They are well-known Antarctic scientist and conservationist Professor Steven Loudon Chown FAA, South African businesswoman Gloria Tomatoe Serobe and Christel Takigawa, anchorwoman based in Japan.

Two overwintering researchers currently on the island write about their work. Camilla Smyth, MFM’s current field worker, describes her role in planning for the mouse eradication, and Michelle Risi writes about the welcome seasonal changes on Marion Island heading into austral spring.

Scalped by Marion’s mice. This Light-mantled Albatross Phoebetria palpebrata chick is certain to have died as a result, photograph by Peter Ryan

Access all MFM’s Quarterly Newsletters here. More information can be found in weekly posts to MFM News on the project’s website and on social media via Facebook and Instagram.  And you can become part of the project by sponsoring a hectare (or more), joining 1650 concerned conservationists who have already done so.

John Cooper, Emeritus Information Officer, Agreement on the Conservation of Albatrosses and Petrels, 19 October 2023

An image from ACAP's Night-setting Factsheet - available to download at the ACAP website under Resources. According to the research undertaken by The Navigators, fishers agreed that setting at night was an effective seabird bycatch mitigation measure

New Zealand social research agency, The Navigators, have prepared a report for the Department of Conservation’s Conservation Services Program. The research analyses the barriers and drivers for fishers to implement seabird bycatch mitigation measures in New Zealand’s small vessel bottom longline fisheries.

The report’s Executive Summary follows:

“Commercial fishers are expected to meet the seabird mitigation standards under the New Zealand Government’s National Plan of Action — Seabirds 2020 (NPOA 2020). Objective one of the NPOA 2020 is to “ensure all New Zealand commercial fishers are using practices that best avoid the risk of seabird bycatch, enabled by appropriate regulations”. These practices referred to are outlined in the 2021 legislative requirements as well as the 2019 mitigation standards, and are supported via collaborative industry approaches including the Department of Conservation’s (DOC) liaison programme.

In the past, DOC has mostly focused on technical solutions and support to help fishers mitigate seabird bycatch. To help supplement their work, DOC identified the need for a deeper understanding of fishers’ drivers and barriers to seabird bycatch mitigation uptake using a social science research approach.

To undertake the research, The Navigators (an independent social research agency) were commissioned to seek feedback from fishers in New Zealand’s inshore small vessel bottom longline commercial fleet. The Navigators conducted 18 in-depth interviews with skippers, owner-operators and owners, representing two-thirds of the fishing effort across the fleet. The research found that fishers are driven to avoid seabird captures, with the key drivers being their respect for seabirds, government interventions (e.g. outreach support, industry education, and compliance monitoring and enforcement), protection of themselves, their crew and industry, and productivity and commercial demand interests.

The research also found fishers have a broad range of motivational and capability barriers to implementing the mitigation standards. Two of the core motivational barriers were:

• fishers were not personally catching any or very few seabirds per year; and
• fishers didn’t understand why it’s necessary to mitigate against seabird captures at times when seabirds are not present.

In addition to the above motivational barriers, bluenose and hāpuka fishers had significant capability barriers in being able to meet the tori line and line weighting regulations. There are also a broad range of other barriers specific to the each of the mitigation standards. The recommendations from this research list a broad range of opportunities to improve seabird mitigation in the fishery and/or to get fishers to consistently follow the mitigation standards. The recommendations are grouped under four topic areas to address each of the following:

1. achievability and safety barriers: These barriers are in most need of attention from a fishers’ point of view and ideally need to be addressed before cameras come onboard. They mostly relate to bluenose and hāpuka fishing, solo fishing, as well as the use of tori lines and hauling mitigation. 
2. motivational barriers: These barriers must be resolved if fishers are going to willingly do more than they are currently. They mostly relate to fishers’ experience in regard to not catching seabirds, their low versus high risk scenarios, and technical issues regarding tangles, weighting, and sink rate tests.
3. information, clarity and direction: The recommendations in this section relate to suggested areas of improvement to help fishers better understand what is expected of them as well as to help increase their knowledge (e.g. through knowledge sharing).
4. sense of fairness and robustness: These recommendations in this section relate to fishers’ understanding and the measurement of seabird capture statistics, as well as how fishers are perceived by the public and NGOs.

Reference: 

Turner, P. 2023. Understanding drivers and barriers to seabird bycatch mitigation uptake in small vessel bottom longline fisheries. MIT2022-02 final report prepared by The Navigators Ltd for the Department of Conservation. 123 p.

18 October 2023

At risk to cats: a breeding Galapagos Petrel in its burrow

Floreana is the sixth largest (at 17 250 ha) of Ecuador’s Galapagos Islands. The island has a population of 160 inhabitants and is an important tourist destination, notably to its historic Post Office Bay. It is also severely impacted by alien species, notably Black Rats Rattus rattus, House Mice Mus musculus and feral cats Felis sylvestris catus.

An example of this impact is for the Critically Endangered Galapagos Petrel Pterodroma phaeopygia which is endemic to the Galapagos Islands, breeding on Floreana, Isabela, San Cristóbal, Santa Cruz and Santiago. Floreana supports over 60% of the species’ global population. One study found almost 50% of Galapagos Petrel nests on Floreana were preyed upon by feral cats (and likely also by Black Rats) despite local control efforts.

A view of Floreana Island; photograph from Island Conservation

After nearly 12 years of planning, the Floreana Ecological Restoration Project has this month commenced restoring Floreana’s many native and endemic species by removing introduced Black Rats, House Mice and feral cats. According to the project’s operational plan the “combination of methods will include aerial- and ground-dispersed toxic rodent and cat baits (resulting in primary and secondary poisoning), trapping, and hunting with and without dogs”. Feral cattle, donkeys, goats and pigs have all previously been removed from Floreana by the Galapagos National Park Directorate.

“Every action has a reaction, and it has been well established that removing invasive species from islands paves the way for ecosystem recovery,” says Chad Hanson, Deputy Vice President Conservation at Island Conservation, and Implementation Advisor for the project. “The vision is for Floreana Island to not only recover but that the community, wildlife, as well as the immediate marine environment thrive as a result of this holistic intervention. As the restoration project moves from imagination to implementation, we’re excited to demonstrate what can be achieved by a community committed to their island home’s well-being.”

On 3 October, two Mosquito ultralight helicopters, adapted to be able to fly unmanned with suspended spreader buckets each able to lift 130-180 kg, began dispersing cereal bait pellets containing the rodenticide brodifacoum at predetermined transects from low altitude to ensure precise distribution over the island. Flights are scheduled to continue through the night. Both the use of unmanned helicopters and night baiting are thought to be novel for an island eradication. The initial bait application is set to span 10 days, covering the entire island, including its coastal cliffs. Three spaced applications are planned to achieve eradication. Aerial baiting targeting cats will commence using meat-based “sausages” containing Para-aminopropiophenone (PAPP) thereafter, scheduled for three applications using the Mosquito helicopters during daylight hours only. This is scheduled to continue until mid-December 2023. Ground baiting against rodents by hand-broadcasting and use of bait stations will occur in selected localities, such as around buildings, freshwater ponds, livestock pens, and in known caves and lava tunnels. Cage and leg-hold traps will also be used to target cats.

A Mosquito ultralight helicopter

“The Floreana Ecological Restoration Project represents the most significant endeavour in the history of the Galapagos National Park. Its success [will symbolize] a global conservation milestone that exemplifies the synergy between conservation and sustainable development, serving as an inspiring model for protected areas worldwide,” emphasized José Antonio Dávalos, the Ecuadorian Minister of Environment, Water, and Ecological Transition.

A Giant Tortoise on Floreana; photograph from Island Conservation

Once free of rodents and cats the project partners plan to reintroduce twelve locally extinct species to the island, phased over at least seven years and commencing with hybrid individuals of the Floreana Giant Tortoise Chelonoidis niger niger in early 2024. Reintroduction of terrestrial birds and a snake are set to follow as the island’s ecosystem recovers.

The Floreana Ecological Restoration Project is directed by the Ecuador Ministry of Environment, through the Galapagos National Park Directorate, in collaboration with the Floreana community and Agency for Biosecurity for Galapagos. It is being executed in collaboration with Fundación de Conservación Jocotoco (Jocotoco Conservation Foundation) and Island Conservation. The project is part of the Island-Ocean Connection Challenge, an ambitious campaign to restore 40 globally significant islands from ridge-to-reef by 2030. Read the complete media release on project initiation by Island Conservation here.

References:

Cruz, J.B. & Cruz, F. 1987. Conservation of the Dark-rumped Petrel Pterodroma phaeopygia in the Galápagos Islands, Ecuador. Biological Conservation 42: 303-311.

Hanson, C. & Campbell, K. 2013. Floreana Island Ecological Restoration: Rodent and Cat Eradication Feasibility Analysis. Santa Cruz: Island Conservation. 85 pp.

Hanson, C. & Campbell, K. 2020. Floreana Island Ecological Restoration: Rodent and Cat Eradication Operational Plan. Puerto Ayora: Island Conservation and Galapagos National Park Directorate. 93 pp.

John Cooper, Emeritus Information Officer, Agreement on the Conservation of Albatrosses and Petrels, 17 October 2023

A Southern Giant Petrel takes flight; photograph by Trevor Hardaker

Júlia Finger (PhD candidate Universidade do Vale do Rio dos Sinos, Brazil) and colleagues have published in the journal Antarctic Science on the habitat selection of Southern Giant Petrels in the Southern Ocean and their potential role  in monitoring the Antarctic Peninsula for practices such as illegal fishing.

Writing to ACAP Latest News, Julia said, “Breeding petrels used a large range of areas in the Peninsula, but also travelled to the tip of Tierra del Fuego in an area with fishing activities. This paper highlights how petrels, especially females, are susceptible to impacts of fisheries outside the Antarctic even during the breeding season and also how they connect both regions. We also propose that [Southern Giant Petrels] can be used as platforms to monitor the Antarctic Peninsula."

The paper’s abstract follows:

“The southern giant petrel (Macronectes giganteus) is a widely distributed top predator of the Southern Ocean. To define the fine-scale foraging areas and habitat use of Antarctic breeding populations, 47 southern giant petrels from Nelson Island were GPS-tracked during the summers of 2019–2020 and 2021–2022. Step-selection analysis was applied to test the effects of environmental variables on habitat selection. Visual overlap with seal haul-out sites and fishing areas was also analysed. Birds primarily used waters to the south of the colony in the Weddell and Bellingshausen seas. Females showed a broader distribution, reaching up to -70°S to the west of Nelson Island, while males were mainly concentrated in waters off the northern Antarctic Peninsula. Habitat selection of both sexes was associated with water depth and proximity to penguin colonies. Both overlapped their foraging areas with fishing sites and females in particular overlapped with toothfish fishery blocks in Antarctica and with fishing areas in the Patagonian Shelf. Due to their habitat associations and overlap with fisheries, when harnessed with tracking devices and animal-borne cameras, giant petrels can act as platforms for monitoring the condition and occurrence of penguin colonies, haul-out sites and unregulated fisheries on various temporal and spatial scales in Antarctica.”

An article on the paper has been published in the Polar Journal, here.

Reference:

Finger, J., Krüger, L., Corá, D., & Petry, M. (2023). Habitat selection of southern giant petrels: Potential environmental monitors of the Antarctic Peninsula. Antarctic Science, 35(4), 256-269. doi:10.1017/S0954102023000147

16 October 2023