Abstract
A survey of seabirds and turtles at St Brandon’s Rock, 400 km north of Mauritius, was undertaken in 2010. We estimated that 1 084 191 seabirds comprising seven breeding species and excluding non-breeders were present at the archipelago and we counted 279 turtle tracks and nesting pits of green turtles Chelonia mydas. Hawksbill turtles Eretmochelys imbricata were also present. Analyses of 30 different islets that make up the atoll showed that the seabird species mostly partitioned their use of islets based on islet size, with four species preferring larger islets and two species preferring smaller islets. Alien species introduced historically are still present and other threats, such as shipwrecks, remain. We propose conservation and other measures that should adequately protect the birds, turtles and coral reef by treating the atoll as a system.
Highlights
Many seabirds breed on a large number of islands distributed throughout the tropical oceans and feed over the surrounding seas, lagoons, and coral reefs (e.g. Feare 1984, Harrison 1985)
In order to conserve and manage coral reef island ecosystems, it is necessary to know which and how many seabirds occupy which of these island ecosystems identify the threats, and propose appropriate conservation measures
St Brandon's Rock (SBR, 16° 23' S, 59° 27' E), known as Saint Brandon’s, St Brandon’s island, St Brandon’s Atoll and Cargados Carajos, is a coral-reef atoll that is situated approximately 400 km north of Mauritius and belongs to the Republic of Mauritius (Post et al 1998). It consists of 15 prominent sandbars and 24 vegetated islets in a coral reef and lagoon system that is 56 km long and 22 km wide (Fig. 1; Government of Mauritius 1986, Post et al 1998)
Summary
Many seabirds breed on a large number of islands distributed throughout the tropical oceans and feed over the surrounding seas, lagoons, and coral reefs (e.g. Feare 1984, Harrison 1985). St Brandon's Rock (SBR, 16° 23' S, 59° 27' E), known as Saint Brandon’s, St Brandon’s island, St Brandon’s Atoll and Cargados Carajos, is a coral-reef atoll that is situated approximately 400 km north of Mauritius and belongs to the Republic of Mauritius (Post et al 1998). It consists of 15 prominent sandbars and 24 vegetated islets in a coral reef and lagoon system that is 56 km long (north to south) and 22 km wide (Fig. 1; Government of Mauritius 1986, Post et al 1998). There are no freshwater bodies on any of the islets
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