Procellaria parkinsoni

Taxonomy

Assessment Information

Geographic Range

Population

Habitat and Ecology

Threats

Conservation Actions

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Taxonomy [top]

Kingdom	Phylum	Class	Order	Family
ANIMALIA	CHORDATA	AVES	PROCELLARIIFORMES	PROCELLARIIDAE

Scientific Name:

Procellaria parkinsoni

Species Authority:

Gray, 1862

Common Name/s:

English

–

Black (Parkinson's) Petrel, Black Petrel, Parkinson's Petrel

Assessment Information [top]

Red List Category & Criteria:

Vulnerable D2 ver 3.1

Year Published:

2010

Assessor/s:

BirdLife International

Reviewer/s:

Calvert, R., Butchart, S., Bird, J.

Contributor/s:

Weeber, B., Taylor, G.

Justification:
This species qualifies as Vulnerable because it breeds on just two very small islands where introduced predators are a potential threat. The population is assumed to be stable, but if a decline is detected, the species should be uplisted to Endangered.

History:

2008	–	Vulnerable
2007	–	Vulnerable
2005	–	Vulnerable
2004	–	Vulnerable
2000	–	Vulnerable
1996	–	Vulnerable
1994	–	Vulnerable

Geographic Range [top]

Range Description:	Procellaria parkinsoni breeds on Great and Little Barrier Islands, New Zealand, where the total population is c.1,300¹¹ and 100 breeding pairs respectively, equating to a total population of c.5,000 individuals⁵. The estimate of 1,300 pairs on Great Barrier Island is lower than previously thought but probably reflects improved information rather than a decline, however it is not a complete survey and although it covers the majority of the island's population further research is needed to assess the true population size. It once bred in the mountains of the North and South Islands, but had disappeared from the mainland by the 1960s. On Little Barrier, it was abundant in the late 1800s but the population was decimated, mainly by feral cats, until predators were eradicated in 1980. The Little Barrier population is now thought to be slowly increasing. On Great Barrier, the population may be stable^3,5. It migrates to the eastern Pacific Ocean between the Galápagos Islands, southern Mexico and northern Peru¹.
Countries:	Native: Colombia; Cook Islands; Costa Rica; French Polynesia; Mexico; New Zealand; Nicaragua; Niue; Panama; Peru; United States; United States; United States Vagrant: Australia; Guatemala Present - origin uncertain: Ecuador; El Salvador; French Southern Territories (the); Kiribati; Tonga
Range Map:	Click here to open the map viewer and explore range.

Population [top]

Population:	The total population is c.1,300 pairs on Great Barrier Island and c.100 breeding pairs on Little Barrier Island (Bell et al. 2009), with an estimated total of c.5,000 individuals including non-breeding birds.
Population Trend:	Stable

Habitat and Ecology [top]

Habitat and Ecology:	Behaviour It is a colonial burrow-nesting, annually-breeding species¹² and can begin breeding at six years of age¹. Most eggs are laid in December, hatch in February and chicks fledge in May at about three months old. Chick provisioning can continue until June¹¹. The youngest recorded bird returning to a colony was three years of age, and the age of first breeding has been recorded at 5 years of age¹¹. Feeding behaviour is characterised by surface feeding and shallow diving in groups of up to 300 individuals, and are frequently seen to associate with fishing vessels and cetaceans. Preliminary geolocator data suggests it preferentially forages on the continental shelf or at seamounts¹⁰, with most foraging trips taking at least 15 days¹¹. Futher data suggests foraging areas are highly variable, though birds travel mainly west and east of northern New Zealand¹¹. Habitat Breeding It nests in virgin podocarp and mixed broadleaf forest above 500 m. On the mainland, it reportedly bred up to 1,200 m, mostly in tall forest, but also in alpine tussock grasslands³. Diet Its diet is dominated by squid and supplemented by tunicates, crustaceans and cyclostomes¹¹.
Systems:	Terrestrial; Marine

Habitat and Ecology:

Behaviour It is a colonial burrow-nesting, annually-breeding species¹² and can begin breeding at six years of age¹. Most eggs are laid in December, hatch in February and chicks fledge in May at about three months old. Chick provisioning can continue until June¹¹. The youngest recorded bird returning to a colony was three years of age, and the age of first breeding has been recorded at 5 years of age¹¹. Feeding behaviour is characterised by surface feeding and shallow diving in groups of up to 300 individuals, and are frequently seen to associate with fishing vessels and cetaceans. Preliminary geolocator data suggests it preferentially forages on the continental shelf or at seamounts¹⁰, with most foraging trips taking at least 15 days¹¹. Futher data suggests foraging areas are highly variable, though birds travel mainly west and east of northern New Zealand¹¹. Habitat Breeding It nests in virgin podocarp and mixed broadleaf forest above 500 m. On the mainland, it reportedly bred up to 1,200 m, mostly in tall forest, but also in alpine tussock grasslands³. Diet Its diet is dominated by squid and supplemented by tunicates, crustaceans and cyclostomes¹¹.

Systems:

Terrestrial; Marine

Threats [top]

Major Threat(s):	Introduced cats decimated the Little Barrier population, killing up to 100% of fledglings in some years², and taking adults. Introduced cats cause minor interference on Great Barrier, but breeding success is high (80% in 2004/5)⁸. Pacific rat Rattus exulans is present on Great Barrier Island but has little effect on this species. Pacific rats were eradicated from Little Barrier Island in 2004. Black rat R.. rattus, stray dogs and feral pigs may also be a threat on Great Barrier. The species is a common scavenger of fishing boat waste, and is caught by commercial longliners in New Zealand waters, and may be at greater risk during migration to the east Pacific off Ecuador and Peru where it is a near-obligate associate of small crustaceans⁴. Birds have been caught on longlines in this region. El Niño fluctuations may also affect the population in this zone⁵. The species is potentially threatened by climate change because it has a geographically bounded distribution: its altitudinal distribution falls entirely within 1,000 m of the highest mountain top within its range (621 m)¹³.

Major Threat(s):

Introduced cats decimated the Little Barrier population, killing up to 100% of fledglings in some years², and taking adults. Introduced cats cause minor interference on Great Barrier, but breeding success is high (80% in 2004/5)⁸. Pacific rat Rattus exulans is present on Great Barrier Island but has little effect on this species. Pacific rats were eradicated from Little Barrier Island in 2004. Black rat R.. rattus, stray dogs and feral pigs may also be a threat on Great Barrier. The species is a common scavenger of fishing boat waste, and is caught by commercial longliners in New Zealand waters, and may be at greater risk during migration to the east Pacific off Ecuador and Peru where it is a near-obligate associate of small crustaceans⁴. Birds have been caught on longlines in this region. El Niño fluctuations may also affect the population in this zone⁵. The species is potentially threatened by climate change because it has a geographically bounded distribution: its altitudinal distribution falls entirely within 1,000 m of the highest mountain top within its range (621 m)¹³.

Conservation Actions [top]

Conservation Actions:	Conservation Actions Underway CMS Appendix II and ACAP Annex 1. Cats were eradicated on Little Barrier Island by 1980. Between 1986 and 1990, 249 fledglings were transferred from Great Barrier to Little Barrier in an attempt to boost population size. Follow-up monitoring indicates mixed results⁹. The colony on Little Barrier is monitored every breeding season to assess breeding success¹. A long-term population study was initiated on Great Barrier in 1996 to study populations annually to determine trends and assess breeding success^5,8. Conservation Actions Proposed Complete an accurate census of both islands. Monitor Great Barrier study populations annually to determine trends, and assess breeding success. Follow-up reports of mainland breeding sites. Develop mitigation devices/techniques to minimise fisheries bycatch⁵. Continue and expand control at Great Barrier if monitoring indicates that any predators are causing a population decline⁵. Eradicate R. exulans from Little Barrier⁵.

Conservation Actions:

Conservation Actions Underway
CMS Appendix II and ACAP Annex 1. Cats were eradicated on Little Barrier Island by 1980. Between 1986 and 1990, 249 fledglings were transferred from Great Barrier to Little Barrier in an attempt to boost population size. Follow-up monitoring indicates mixed results⁹. The colony on Little Barrier is monitored every breeding season to assess breeding success¹. A long-term population study was initiated on Great Barrier in 1996 to study populations annually to determine trends and assess breeding success^5,8.

Conservation Actions Proposed
Complete an accurate census of both islands. Monitor Great Barrier study populations annually to determine trends, and assess breeding success. Follow-up reports of mainland breeding sites. Develop mitigation devices/techniques to minimise fisheries bycatch⁵. Continue and expand control at Great Barrier if monitoring indicates that any predators are causing a population decline⁵. Eradicate R. exulans from Little Barrier⁵.

Citation:	BirdLife International 2010. Procellaria parkinsoni. In: IUCN 2011. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2011.2. <www.iucnredlist.org>. Downloaded on 24 May 2012.
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