Seabirds in seasonal environments are often long-distance migrants and, for many species and populations, their ranges throughout the non-breeding period are unknown. As conditions during the non-breeding season often affect subsequent performance, the choice of migration strategy can have major implications for timing of breeding and success and, ultimately, population dynamics. We tracked south polar skuas Catharacta maccormicki from a single breeding population at King George Island in the South Shetland Islands (Antarctica). Overall, 27 birds (69%) migrated to the northern Atlantic (3 regions), 10 birds (26%) to the northern Pacific Ocean (2 regions), and 2 birds wintered in the southern hemisphere. Individuals tracked in consecutive non-breeding seasons chose the same ocean for wintering. Despite migrating to different oceans, birds showed a similar figure-ofeight flight pattern and equivalent residency periods in the main wintering areas. In addition, 87% of the migrants used terminal stop-over sites off South America shortly before returning to the breeding site. High diversity of migration patterns may buffer south polar skuas from climate change and other anthropogenic threats.KEY WORDS: Migratory connectivity · Annual cycle · Seabird · Antarctic · Pacific · Trans-equatorial · Geolocator Resale or republication not permitted without written consent of the publisherMar Ecol Prog Ser 435: [263][264][265][266][267] 2011 & Larsson 1997). However, in the absence of tracking data, there were no studies of the routes or wintering destinations used by specific breeding populations. The purpose of this study was to determine intrapopulation variability in migration patterns of south polar skuas breeding on King George Island, which might theoretically overwinter in either the Pacific or Atlantic oceans. MATERIALS AND METHODSWe equipped 58 adult south polar skuas (27 females, 29 males, 2 unknown sex) with light recording geolocators (British Antarctic Survey, Cambridge) during 3 breeding seasons (2006)(2007)(2008) at King George Island in the Maritime Antarctic (62°12' S, 58°58' W). The geo locators (MK5 and MK9) weighed 9.4 and 8.2 g including the steel ring, respectively, which corresponded to ca. 0.8% of the mean adult body mass. Thirty-nine individuals (18 females, 20 males, 1 unknown sex; all birds were later genetically sexed, Fridolfs son & Ellegren 1999) were recaptured at the same breeding site during consecutive seasons until 2010, resulting in 52 annual tracks. Re-sighting rate did not differ between equipped birds (83%) and breeding birds without a device (78%, logistic regression, Wald = 7.28, p = 0.393). Two positions per day were calculated from light measurements using TransEdit and BirdTracker software (British Antarctic Survey, Cambridge), based on a standard approach (Phillips et al. 2006). Positions that were derived from interrupted light curves around dawn or dusk, that were close to equinoxes, or were obviously erroneous, were excluded, resulting in an average of 331 ± 25 valid...

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The Antarctic terrestrial environment is under increasing pressure from human activities. The Fildes Region is characterized by high biodiversity, but is also a major logistic centre for the northern Antarctic Peninsula. Different interests, from scientific research, nature conservation, protection of geological and historical values, station operations, transport logistics and tourism, regularly overlap in space and time. This has led to increasing conflict among the multiple uses of the region and breaches of the legal requirements for environmental protection that apply in the area. The aim of this study was to assess the impacts of human activities in the Fildes Region by monitoring the distribution of bird and seal breeding sites and recording human activities and their associated environmental impacts. Data from an initial monitoring period 2003–06 were compared with data from 2008–10. We observed similar or increased levels of air, land and ship traffic, but fewer violations of overflight limits near Antarctic Specially Protected Area No. 150 Ardley Island. Open waste dumping and oil contamination are still major environmental impacts. Scientific and outdoor leisure activities undertaken by station personnel are more frequent than tourist activities and are likely to have a commensurate level of environmental impact. Despite the initial success of some existing management measures, it is essential that scientific and environmental values continue to be safeguarded, otherwise environmental impacts will increase and the habitat will be further degraded. We argue that the Fildes Region should be considered for designation as an Antarctic Specially Managed Area, a measure that has proven effective for environmental management of vulnerable areas of the Antarctic

Antarctic marine ecosystems undergo enormous changes, presumably due to climate change and fishery. Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) have an unprecedented potential for measuring these changes by mapping indicator species such as penguins even in remote areas. We used a battery-powered fixed-wing UAV to survey colonies along a 30-km stretch of the remote coast of southwest King George Island and northwest Nelson Island (South Shetland Islands, Antarctica) during the austral summer 2016/17. With multiple flights, we covered a total distance of 317 km. We determined the exact position of 14 chinstrap penguin colonies, including two small unknown colonies, with a total abundance of 35,604 adults. To model the number of occupied nests based on the number of adults counted in the UAV imagery we used data derived from terrestrial time-lapse imagery. The comparison with previous studies revealed a decline in the total abundance of occupied nests. However, we also found four chinstrap penguin colonies that have grown since the 1980s against the general trend on the South Shetland Islands. The results proved the suitability of the use of small and lightweight fixed-wing UAVs with electric engines for mapping penguin colonies in remote areas in the Antarctic.

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