Updated estimate of the breeding population of Adélie penguins (Pygoscelis adeliae) at Penguin Point, Marambio / Seymour Island within the proposed Weddell Sea Marine Protected Area

Perchivale, Pablo J.; Juáres, Mariana A.; Santos, Mercedes; Marti, Lucas J.; Silvestro, Anahí M.; Coria, Néstor Rubén

doi:10.21203/rs.3.rs-2117503/v1

Cited by 1 publication

(1 citation statement)

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“…agiso ft. com/) commercial photogrammetry software using structure-from-motion processing 40 . 1985 21954 (N1) 68 Ground 2000 20061 (C3) 69 Ground/mas 2006 26400 (N4) 67 Ground 2009 16015 (N2) 67 Ground 2014 29069 (N1) 70 Ground To determine the total number of penguin chicks in RPAS image orthomosaics, individual penguins were marked and counted by trained remote-sensing analysts using GIS software. Each penguin within the study area colony was delineated by appending a spatial data point to its location using ArcGIS Pro (Version 2.8).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Adélie penguins north and east of the ‘Adélie gap’ continue to thrive in the face of dramatic declines elsewhere in the Antarctic Peninsula region

Wethington

Flynn

Borowicz

et al. 2023

Sci Rep

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While population declines among Adélie penguins and population increases among gentoo penguins on the Western Antarctic Peninsula are well established, the logistical challenges of operating in the sea ice-heavy northern tip of the Antarctic Peninsula have prohibited reliable monitoring of seabirds in this region. Here we describe the findings of an expedition to the northern and eastern sides of the Antarctic Peninsula—a region at the nexus of two proposed Marine Protected Areas—to investigate the distribution and abundance of penguins in this region. We discovered several previously undocumented penguin colonies, completed direct surveys of three colonies initially discovered in satellite imagery, and re-surveyed several colonies last surveyed more than a decade ago. Whereas our expectation had been that the Peninsula itself would divide the areas undergoing ecological transition and the apparently more stable Weddell Sea region, our findings suggest that the actual transition zone lies in the so-called "Adélie gap," a 400-km stretch of coastline in which Adélies are notably absent. Our findings suggest that the region north and east of this gap represents a distinct ecoregion whose dynamics stand in sharp contrast to surrounding areas and is likely to be impacted by future conservation measures.

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