Abstract:
The colony size and breeding success of Southern giant petrels (Macronectus giganteus) on Signy Island has been monitored annually since 1996. The data presented here includes the number of breeding pairs (occupied nests) and the number of chicks present in their nests prior to fledging. Breeding pairs and chicks are monitored by direct counts at nine sites on the west coast of the island. The nest surveys are undertaken from December to January, with chick counts completed in mid-March.
This work was funded by Natural Environment Research Council (UK) core funding to the British Antarctic Survey.
Keywords:
Petrel, Procellariidae, Signy Island, breeding population, fluctuations, productivity
Dunn, M., Adlard, S., Lynnes, A., Briggs, D., Fox, D., & Philips, R. (2021). Population size and breeding success of Southern giant petrels (Macronectes giganteus), at Signy Island, South Orkney Islands, 1996 to 2019 (Version 1.0) [Data set]. NERC EDS UK Polar Data Centre. https://doi.org/10.5285/78284adb-92be-4bea-ab10-080779ee58c3
Dunn, M., Adlard, S., Lynnes, A., Briggs, D., Fox, D., & Philips, R. (2021). Population size and breeding success of Southern giant petrels (Macronectes giganteus), at Signy Island, South Orkney Islands, 1996 to 2019 (Version 1.0) [Data set]. NERC EDS UK Polar Data Centre. https://doi.org/10.5285/78284adb-92be-4bea-ab10-080779ee58c3
| Access Constraints: | This data is governed by the NERC data policy http://www.nerc.ac.uk/research/sites/data/policy/ and supplied under Open Government Licence v.3 http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3/ |
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| Creation Date: | 2021-06-07 |
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| Dataset Progress: | Planned |
| Dataset Language: | English |
| ISO Topic Categories: |
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| Parameters: |
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| Personnel: | |
| Name | UK Polar Data Centre |
| Role(s) | Metadata Author |
| Organisation | British Antarctic Survey |
| Name | Dr Michael J Dunn |
| Role(s) | Investigator, Technical Contact |
| Organisation | British Antarctic Survey |
| Name | Amanda Lynnes |
| Role(s) | Investigator |
| Organisation | International Association of Antarctic Tour Operators |
| Name | Dirk Briggs |
| Role(s) | Investigator |
| Organisation | British Antarctic Survey |
| Name | Derren Fox |
| Role(s) | Investigator |
| Organisation | The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds |
| Name | Stacey Adlard |
| Role(s) | Investigator |
| Organisation | British Antarctic Survey |
| Name | Dr Richard Phillips |
| Role(s) | Investigator |
| Organisation | British Antarctic Survey |
| Parent Dataset: | N/A |
| Reference: | Dunn, M.J., Jackson, J.A., Adlard, S. et al. Population size and trends of southern giant petrels (Macronectus giganteus) nesting at Signy Island, South Orkney Islands. Polar Biol 39, 1309-1317 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00300-015-1855-0 | |
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| Quality: | All colonies were surveyed at least twice on the same day by a minimum of two observers to maintain consistency. All surveys were repeated until count totals were within 10 percent of each other to ensure accuracy. Chicks were counted in March, although they do not fledge until late April. This is due to lack of personnel after late March. However, survival from March onwards was over 97 percent, and was thus regarded as a good proxy for breeding success. Position of nesting groups were recorded with hand-held GPS devices to check for shifts in colony locations. Colonies surveyed were did not comprise of all giant petrels present on Signy Island, but were part of the subset of individuals annually monitored as part of ongoing British Antarctic Survey research. |
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| Lineage: | Nest counts were carried out annually in December or January. All surveys were direct ground counts of nests (and thus incubating birds), carried out by a minimum of two observers and all nests were surveyed at least twice on the same day. Distance from nests was roughly 30 to 40 m, closer if need be. Counts were repeated until values were within 10 percent of each other. Chick counts were done in mid-March, when they were no longer brooded or guarded by a parent. |
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| Temporal Coverage: | |
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| Start Date | 1996-12-23 |
| End Date | 2020-03-18 |
| Spatial Coverage: | |
| Latitude | |
| Southernmost | -60.71 |
| Northernmost | -60.71 |
| Longitude | |
| Westernmost | -45.6 |
| Easternmost | -45.6 |
| Altitude | |
| Min Altitude | N/A |
| Max Altitude | N/A |
| Depth | |
| Min Depth | N/A |
| Max Depth | N/A |
| Location: | |
| Location | South Orkney Islands |
| Detailed Location | Signy Island |
| Sensor(s): |
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| Data Storage: | 1x .csv |
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