Changing fortunes of the Black-winged Petrel Pterodroma nigripennis following the Lord Howe Island Rodent Eradication Project - interactions with other recovering species
Summary In 2019, a Rodent Eradication Project (REP) was implemented on World Heritage listed Lord Howe Island, Australia. Among the species expected to benefit was a burrow-nesting seabird, the Black-winged Petrel Pterodroma nigripennis. Prior to the REP, we assessed causes of Black-winged Petrel ne...
Published in: | Bird Conservation International |
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Language: | English |
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Cambridge University Press (CUP)
2022
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Online Access: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0959270922000132 https://www.cambridge.org/core/services/aop-cambridge-core/content/view/S0959270922000132 |
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crcambridgeupr:10.1017/s0959270922000132 2024-10-06T13:52:23+00:00 Changing fortunes of the Black-winged Petrel Pterodroma nigripennis following the Lord Howe Island Rodent Eradication Project - interactions with other recovering species O’Dwyer, Terence Carlile, Nicholas O’Neill, Lisa Halpin, Luke R. Australian Government Ecological Society of Australia Holsworth Wildlife Research Endowment 2022 http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0959270922000132 https://www.cambridge.org/core/services/aop-cambridge-core/content/view/S0959270922000132 en eng Cambridge University Press (CUP) https://www.cambridge.org/core/terms Bird Conservation International volume 33 ISSN 0959-2709 1474-0001 journal-article 2022 crcambridgeupr https://doi.org/10.1017/s0959270922000132 2024-09-11T04:05:17Z Summary In 2019, a Rodent Eradication Project (REP) was implemented on World Heritage listed Lord Howe Island, Australia. Among the species expected to benefit was a burrow-nesting seabird, the Black-winged Petrel Pterodroma nigripennis. Prior to the REP, we assessed causes of Black-winged Petrel nest failure using surveillance cameras. We also measured breeding success before and after the REP and investigated emerging pressures on breeding success from other native species. In 2017, ship rats Rattus rattus were a major cause of Black-winged Petrel nest failure, and breeding success was as low as 2.5%, compared to 47.5% on rodent-free Phillip Island (Norfolk Island Group). In 2020, in the absence of rodents, breeding success on Lord Howe Island increased dramatically to 67% and remained high (50%) in 2021. This result suggests that reproductive output of small seabirds has been heavily supressed by rodents on Lord Howe Island for decades. A subsequent increase in the population of a predatory endemic rail, the Lord Howe Woodhen Hypotaenida sylvestris , combined with burrow competition from Little Shearwaters Puffinus assimilis , indicated that initial high breeding success may not be sustained. However, the surge in successful breeding of Black-winged Petrels is likely to result in a significant increase in fledgling numbers and the recruitment of hundreds of additional birds each year. Given the important role of petrels in global nutrient cycling, and their positive influence on island biodiversity, their expansion should benefit the ecological restoration of Lord Howe Island. Article in Journal/Newspaper Rattus rattus Cambridge University Press Bird Conservation International 1 11 |
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Open Polar |
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Cambridge University Press |
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English |
description |
Summary In 2019, a Rodent Eradication Project (REP) was implemented on World Heritage listed Lord Howe Island, Australia. Among the species expected to benefit was a burrow-nesting seabird, the Black-winged Petrel Pterodroma nigripennis. Prior to the REP, we assessed causes of Black-winged Petrel nest failure using surveillance cameras. We also measured breeding success before and after the REP and investigated emerging pressures on breeding success from other native species. In 2017, ship rats Rattus rattus were a major cause of Black-winged Petrel nest failure, and breeding success was as low as 2.5%, compared to 47.5% on rodent-free Phillip Island (Norfolk Island Group). In 2020, in the absence of rodents, breeding success on Lord Howe Island increased dramatically to 67% and remained high (50%) in 2021. This result suggests that reproductive output of small seabirds has been heavily supressed by rodents on Lord Howe Island for decades. A subsequent increase in the population of a predatory endemic rail, the Lord Howe Woodhen Hypotaenida sylvestris , combined with burrow competition from Little Shearwaters Puffinus assimilis , indicated that initial high breeding success may not be sustained. However, the surge in successful breeding of Black-winged Petrels is likely to result in a significant increase in fledgling numbers and the recruitment of hundreds of additional birds each year. Given the important role of petrels in global nutrient cycling, and their positive influence on island biodiversity, their expansion should benefit the ecological restoration of Lord Howe Island. |
author2 |
Australian Government Ecological Society of Australia Holsworth Wildlife Research Endowment |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
O’Dwyer, Terence Carlile, Nicholas O’Neill, Lisa Halpin, Luke R. |
spellingShingle |
O’Dwyer, Terence Carlile, Nicholas O’Neill, Lisa Halpin, Luke R. Changing fortunes of the Black-winged Petrel Pterodroma nigripennis following the Lord Howe Island Rodent Eradication Project - interactions with other recovering species |
author_facet |
O’Dwyer, Terence Carlile, Nicholas O’Neill, Lisa Halpin, Luke R. |
author_sort |
O’Dwyer, Terence |
title |
Changing fortunes of the Black-winged Petrel Pterodroma nigripennis following the Lord Howe Island Rodent Eradication Project - interactions with other recovering species |
title_short |
Changing fortunes of the Black-winged Petrel Pterodroma nigripennis following the Lord Howe Island Rodent Eradication Project - interactions with other recovering species |
title_full |
Changing fortunes of the Black-winged Petrel Pterodroma nigripennis following the Lord Howe Island Rodent Eradication Project - interactions with other recovering species |
title_fullStr |
Changing fortunes of the Black-winged Petrel Pterodroma nigripennis following the Lord Howe Island Rodent Eradication Project - interactions with other recovering species |
title_full_unstemmed |
Changing fortunes of the Black-winged Petrel Pterodroma nigripennis following the Lord Howe Island Rodent Eradication Project - interactions with other recovering species |
title_sort |
changing fortunes of the black-winged petrel pterodroma nigripennis following the lord howe island rodent eradication project - interactions with other recovering species |
publisher |
Cambridge University Press (CUP) |
publishDate |
2022 |
url |
http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0959270922000132 https://www.cambridge.org/core/services/aop-cambridge-core/content/view/S0959270922000132 |
genre |
Rattus rattus |
genre_facet |
Rattus rattus |
op_source |
Bird Conservation International volume 33 ISSN 0959-2709 1474-0001 |
op_rights |
https://www.cambridge.org/core/terms |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1017/s0959270922000132 |
container_title |
Bird Conservation International |
container_start_page |
1 |
op_container_end_page |
11 |
_version_ |
1812180754883411968 |