| Summary: | The report summarizes the results of the common murre restoration monitoring work conducted in the northern Gulf of Alaska for the Exxon Valdez Oil Spill Trustee Council. Information on population numbers, nesting chronology, and productivity of murres were collected by U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) biologists at the East Amatuli Island- Light Rock and Nord Island-northwest Islet colonies in the Barren Islands during the 1993 and 1994 nesting seasons.These data are presented and statistically compared with information reported in the 1989-1993 FWS murrage damage assessment and restoration studies, and with data obtained during 1990-1992 University of Washington (UW) and 1991 Dames & Moore studies. Although positive trends in population numbers were found on two FWS and three UW plots at East Amatuli Island-Light Rock over the postspill period, no trends were apparent on larger sections of habitat at this colony or at the nearby Nord Island-Northwest Islet nesting complex. Nesting chronology was similar between study sites and about one week earlier than during 1993. Productivity also did not differ between study sites. In general, reproductive success in the Barren Islands was normal to high, compared with other Gulf of Alaska murres colonies.
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