First satellite tracks of the Endangered black-capped petrel

Pgr Jodice,Ge Wallace,Y Satgé,E Rupp,Ra Ronconi

doi:10.3354/esr00697

Abstract

The black-capped petrel Pterodroma hasitata is an endangered seabird with fewer than 2000 breeding pairs restricted to a few breeding sites in Haiti and the Dominican Republic. To date, use areas at sea have been determined entirely from vessel-based surveys and opportunistic sightings and, as such, spatial and temporal gaps in our understanding of the species’ marine range are likely. To enhance our understanding of marine use areas, we deployed satellite tags on 3 black-capped petrels breeding on Hispaniola, representing the first tracking study for this species and one of the first published tracking studies for any breeding seabird in the Caribbean. During chick rearing, petrels primarily used marine habitats in the southern Caribbean Sea (ca. 18.0° to 11.5° N, 70.0° to 75.5° W) between the breeding site and the coasts of Venezuela and Colombia. Maximum distance from the breeding sites ranged from ca. 500 to 1500 km during the chick-rearing period. During the post-breeding period, each bird dispersed north and used waters west of the Gulf Stream offshore of the midand southern Atlantic coasts of the USA as well as Gulf Stream waters and deeper pelagic waters east of the Gulf Stream. Maximum distance from the breeding sites ranged from ca. 2000 to 2200 km among birds during the nonbreeding period. Petrels used waters located within 14 different exclusive economic zones, suggesting that international collaboration will benefit the development of management strategies for this species.

Highlights

One of the most effective means to inform assessment of threats to seabirds away from breeding sites is to define their spatial and temporal use areas at sea
The species is confirmed to breed at Macaya, Massif de la Selle, and Sierra de Bahoruco on Hispaniola Island and is suspected to breed at 2 additional sites in the Dominican Republic and 1 site in Cuba (Simons et al 2013), and radar surveys in 2015 in Dominica resulted in hundreds of detections of black-capped petrels
Our understanding of marine habitat use for both the cahow and black-capped petrel has primarily been limited to data gathered from surveys and opportunistic observations at sea, which are not balanced in time or space

Summary

Introduction

One of the most effective means to inform assessment of threats to seabirds away from breeding sites is to define their spatial and temporal use areas at sea. In the western North Atlantic, marine spatial data for Procellariiformes, as well as most other seabirds, have been obtained primarily through shipbased surveys, south of ca. The western North Atlantic historically supported 3 breeding species of gadfly petrels Pterodroma spp. The black-capped petrel P. hasitata, known as the diablotín, is estimated to have < 2000 breeding pairs and is listed as Endangered on the IUCN Red List (BirdLife International 2015). Our understanding of marine habitat use for both the cahow and black-capped petrel has primarily been limited to data gathered from surveys and opportunistic observations at sea, which are not balanced in time or space. Our study sought to obtain novel data on movement patterns between breeding and foraging sites, foraging trip duration during the breeding season, and migration routes and wintering use areas. A more thorough and complex habitat modeling approach will follow

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Results

Conclusion