Patrick Ingremeau
TAMANDUA
PRINCE EDWARD ISLANDS’ BIRD SPECIES
South African sub-Antarctic islands
The Prince Edward Islands group includes two islands, Prince Edward and Marion. This group is South Africa’s only dependency.
Prince Edward Island is named after Prince Edward, Duke of Kent and Strathearn, whereas Marion Island is named after Marc-Joseph Marion du Fresne, a French explorer.
Both islands are special Nature Reserves under the South African Environmental Management. Activities are restricted to research and conservation management. Only some humans of the staff are living on Marion Island, whereas Prince Edward Island is uninhabited.
These islands are about 1,769 kilometres SE of Port Elizabeth in mainland South Africa.
Marion Island is the largest with 25 km long and 17 km wide. The coastline is made of high cliffs. The Mascarin Peak (1,242 metres) is the highest point.
Prince Edward Island is smaller and is about 10 km long and 6,5 wide. It lies some 22 kilometres to the NE of Marion Island. The highest point is the Van Zinderen Bakker Peak (672 metres). Some offshore rocks lie along the northern coast.
Both islands have volcanic origins and the volcano is active on Marion Island. The climate is cool and windy and strong winds blow almost every day. It rains about 28 days a month and this place is one of the cloudiest of the world. Temperatures vary from 8,3°C in February (midsummer) to 3,9°C in August (midwinter).
Like on other subantarctic islands, plants are usually limited to grasses and mosses.
The fauna includes insects and large populations of seabirds, seals and penguins. In the surrounding waters, several species of whales, and especially orcas, prey on penguins and seals.
The wildlife is vulnerable to introduced species, and especially cats which kill more burrowing petrels than mice.
Following the extinction of some species of petrels on Marion Island, a “cat eradication program” was established. In 1982, only 600 cats were still alive. There were 3,400 cats in 1977. The remaining cats were killed by nocturnal shooting. Marion Island is today a cat-free island, but now, mice have proliferated and kill the chicks of the albatrosses.
Several species of birds are breeding on these islands, and especially seabirds. Among the albatrosses, the Indian Yellow-nosed Albatross breeds at Prince Edward Island.
No endemic species but numerous breeding seabirds and passing birds.
Text by Nicole Bouglouan
MARION ISLAND’s BIRDS
Antarctic Tern - Sterna vittata - Sterne couronnée
Black-browed Albatross - Thalassarche melanophris - Albatros à sourcils noirs
Black-faced Sheathbill - Chionis minor - Petit Chionis
Blue Petrel - Halobaena caerulea - Prion bleu
Brown Skua – Stercorarius antarcticus - Labbe antarctique
Common Diving-Petrel - Pelecanoides urinatrix - Puffinure plongeur
Crozet Shag - Leucocarbo melanogenis - Cormoran de Crozet
Fairy prion - Pachyptila turtur - Prion colombe
Gentoo Penguin - Pygoscelis papua - Manchot papou
Great-winged Petrel - Pterodroma macroptera - Pétrel noir
Grey-backed Storm-Petrel - Garrodia nereis - Océanite néréide
Grey-headed Albatross – Thalassarche chrysostoma – Albatros à tête grise
Grey Petrel - Procellaria cinerea - Puffin gris
Kelp Gull - Larus dominicanus – Goéland dominicain
Kerguelen Petrel - Aphrodroma brevirostris - Pétrel des Kerguelen
Kerguelen Tern - Sterna virgata - Sterne de Kerguelen
King Penguin - Aptenodytes patagonicus - Manchot Royal
Light-mantled Albatross - Phoebetria palpebrata - Albatros fuligineux
Macaroni Penguin – Eudyptes chrysolophus – Gorfou doré
Northern Giant-Petrel – Macronectes halli – Pétrel de Hall
Salvin’s Prion - Pachyptila salvini - Prion de Salvin
Soft-plumaged Petrel - Pterodroma mollis - Pétrel soyeux
Sooty Albatross - Phoebetria fusca - Albatros brun
Southern Giant Petrel - Macronectes giganteus - Pétrel géant
Southern Rockhopper Penguin - Eudyptes chrysocome - Gorfou sauteur
South Georgia Diving-Petrel - Pelecanoides georgicus - Puffinure de Géorgie du Sud
Wandering Albatross - Diomedea exulans - Albatros hurleur
White-chinned Petrel - Procellaria aequinoctialis - Puffin à menton blanc
PRINCE EDWARD ISLAND’s BIRDS
African Cuckoo - Cuculus gularis - Coucou africain
Antarctic Prion - Pachyptila desolata - Prion de la Désolation
Antarctic Petrel - Thalassoica Antarctica - Pétrel antarctique
Australasian Gannet - Morus serrator - Fou austral
Barn Swallow - Hirundo rustica - Hirondelle rustique
Black-bellied Storm-Petrel - Fregetta tropica - Océanite à ventre noir
Black-browed Albatross - Thalassarche melanophris - Albatros à sourcils noirs
Black-faced Sheathbill - Chionis minor - Petit Chionis
Blue Petrel - Halobaena caerulea - Prion bleu
Broad-billed Prion - Pachyptila vittata - Prion de Forster
Brown Skua – Stercorarius antarcticus - Labbe antarctique
Cape Petrel - Daption capense - Damier du Cap
Common Diving-Petrel - Pelecanoides urinatrix - Puffinure plongeur
Common Greenshank - Tringa nebularia - Chevalier aboyeur
Common Ringed Plover - Charadrius hiaticula - Pluvier grand-gravelot
Common Sandpiper - Actitis hypoleucos - Chevalier guignette
Common Swift - Apus apus - Martinet noir
Crozet Shag - Leucocarbo melanogenis - Cormoran de Crozet
Fairy prion - Pachyptila turtur - Prion colombe
Gentoo Penguin - Pygoscelis papua - Manchot papou
Great-winged Petrel - Pterodroma macroptera - Pétrel noir
Grey-backed Storm-Petrel - Garrodia nereis - Océanite néréide
Grey-headed Albatross – Thalassarche chrysostoma – Albatros à tête grise
Grey Petrel - Procellaria cinerea - Puffin gris
House Sparrow - Passer domesticus - Moineau domestique
Imperial Shag - Leucocarbo atriceps - Cormoran impérial
Indian Yellow-nosed Albatross - Thalassarche carteri - Albatros de l’Océan Indien
Intermediate Egret – Mesophoyx intermedia – Héron intermédiaire
Kerguelen Petrel - Aphrodroma brevirostris - Pétrel des Kerguelen
King Penguin - Aptenodytes patagonicus - Manchot Royal
Light-mantled Albatross - Phoebetria palpebrata - Albatros fuligineux
Little Shearwater - Puffinus assimilis - Petit Puffin
Little Stint - Calidris minuta - Bécasseau minute
Macaroni Penguin – Eudyptes chrysolophus – Gorfou doré
Northern Giant-Petrel – Macronectes halli – Pétrel de Hall
Northern Pintail - Anas acuta - Canard pilet
Parasitic Jaeger or Arctic Skua - Stercorarius parasiticus - Labbe parasite
Pectoral Sandpiper - Calidris melanotos - Bécasseau tacheté
Red Phalarope - Phalaropus fulicarius - Phalarope à bec large
Red-backed Shrike - Lanius collurio - Pie-grièche écorcheur
Ruddy Turnstone - Arenaria interpres - Tournepierre à collier
Salvin’s Prion - Pachyptila salvini - Prion de Salvin
Scopoli’s Shearwater - Calonectris diomedea - Puffin de Scopoli
Shy Albatross - Thalassarche cauta - Albatros à cape blanche
Soft-plumaged Petrel - Pterodroma mollis - Pétrel soyeux
Sooty Albatross - Phoebetria fusca - Albatros brun
Sooty Shearwater - Puffinus griseus - Puffin fuligineux
Southern Fulmar - Fulmarus glacialoides - Fulmar argenté
Southern Giant Petrel - Macronectes giganteus - Pétrel géant
Southern Rockhopper Penguin - Eudyptes chrysocome - Gorfou sauteur
Southern Royal Albatross - Diomedea epomophora - Albatros royal (du Sud)
South Georgia Diving-Petrel - Pelecanoides georgicus - Puffinure de Géorgie du Sud
Terek Sandpiper - Xenus cinereus - Chevalier bargette
Three-banded Plover - Charadrius tricollaris - Gravelot à triple collier
Wandering Albatross - Diomedea exulans - Albatros hurleur
Western Cattle Egret - Bubulcus ibis - Héron garde-bœufs
Western Yellow Wagtail - Motacilla flava - Bergeronnette printanière
Whimbrel – Numenius phaeopus – Courlis corlieu
White-chinned Petrel - Procellaria aequinoctialis - Puffin à menton blanc
White-headed Petrel – Pterodroma lessonii – Pétrel de Lesson
White Stork – Ciconia ciconia – Cigogne blanche
Willow Warbler - Phylloscopus trochilus - Pouillot fitis
Wilson’s Storm-Petrel - Oceanites oceanicus - Océanite de Wilson
Wood Sandpiper - Tringa glareola - Chevalier sylvain
Sources:
BirdLife International (BirdLife International)
Wikipedia, the free encyclopaedia
Ports and Ships - Marion and Prince Edward Islands by Terry Hutson
Prince Edward Islands Marine Protected Area
© Dr Samantha Petersen/WWF-SA
SANAP – South African National Antarctic Programme