The Bermudian rock lizard or skink Eumeces longirostris is categorized as Critically Endangered on the 2000 IUCN Red List. Skinks are vulnerable to habitat loss, introduction of non-native species and mortality caused by discarded bottles and cans that act as selfbaiting traps. This study describes the population characteristics of the Bermudian skink on two islands of the Bermudian archipelago: Nonsuch and Southampton islands. Nonsuch Island is a nature reserve but has populations of introduced lizards of the genus Anolis, lizard-eating birds and (a new ®nding) the cane toad Bufo marinus. Southampton Island is relatively isolated and has no introduced species. The skink population on Nonsuch Island was not investigated in detail, but appears to be small, localized to human habitation (where cover and food scraps are available) and dom-inated by large, old (some possibly >27 years) animals that exhibit high mutilation rates. Breeding occurs, but survival to adulthood appears poor. All of neighbouring Southampton Island was intensively trapped, with traps placed at the intersections of a 10-m grid. The population was estimated by mark±recapture trials to be c. 400 adults and juveniles; hatchlings are insectivorous and not susceptible to trapping. The population on Southampton Island is currently the largest known on Bermuda and appears to be viable; sustained isolation from predators and people is essential to its maintenance.

Bermuda is an isolated 5560 ha chain of limestone islands on a 150 000 ha seamount located near 32°N, 64°W. Meadows of tropical and subtropical seagrasses, dominated by Thalassia testudinum and Syringodium filiforme, are found from inshore bays out to the inner edge of the rim reef that encircles the platform. Fine-scale computerized mapping and subsequent broad-scaled field assessment of seagrass meadows in Bermuda show that (1) meadows representing nearly one-quarter of the territory's total seagrass area in 1997 had declined by 2004, (2) net loss of seagrass meadows occurred at rim reef and lagoonal locations that are far-removed from anthropogenic disturbances, (3) the decline appears to have been in progress as early as 1996, and (4) both T. testudinum and S. filiforme meadows declined. Nearly 2100 ha of meadows were visible in a 1997 georeferenced mosaic of aerial photographs of the Bermuda platform. In 2004, 22 meadows that represented about 475 of the 900 ha of offshore seagrass identified in 1997 and earlier were absent or in obvious decline. The size and location of inshore and nearshore meadows, which are exposed to intense anthropogenic stresses and physical damage, varied over the same 7 yr but their total area has either remained unchanged or even increased. Processes contributing to the decline in offshore meadows have yet to be determined, but may include herbivory by juvenile green turtles and parrotfishes and below-normal productivity owing to a winter cold-water event correlated with a change in the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) in 1996. The potential consequences to Bermuda of the loss of nearly 500 ha of critical marine habitat are of extreme concern.

The Bermudian rock lizard or skink Eumeces longirostris is categorized as Critically Endangered on the 2000 IUCN Red List. Skinks are vulnerable to habitat loss, introduction of non‐native species and mortality caused by discarded bottles and cans that act as self‐baiting traps. This study describes the population characteristics of the Bermudian skink on two islands of the Bermudian archipelago: Nonsuch and Southampton islands. Nonsuch Island is a nature reserve but has populations of introduced lizards of the genus Anolis, lizard‐eating birds and (a new finding) the cane toad Bufo marinus. Southampton Island is relatively isolated and has no introduced species. The skink population on Nonsuch Island was not investigated in detail, but appears to be small, localized to human habitation (where cover and food scraps are available) and dominated by large, old (some possibly >27 years) animals that exhibit high mutilation rates. Breeding occurs, but survival to adulthood appears poor. All of neighbouring Southampton Island was intensively trapped, with traps placed at the intersections of a 10‐m grid. The population was estimated by mark–recapture trials to be c. 400 adults and juveniles; hatchlings are insectivorous and not susceptible to trapping. The population on Southampton Island is currently the largest known on Bermuda and appears to be viable; sustained isolation from predators and people is essential to its maintenance.

No abstract

Fundulus bermudae and Fundulus relictus are endemic to Bermuda and are protected under the Bermuda Protected Species Act 2003. These killifishes were described as abundant and widespread in the wetland communities of Bermuda during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Surveys were undertaken during 2004-2005 to determine the current distribution, as well as to estimate the size and structure of each Fundulus population. Killifishes are now found in only 9 isolated ponds. For 6 ponds, populations appear to be large enough to be self-sustaining for the foreseeable future; for 1 pond, the population is low enough to be regarded as vulnerable. Estimates were not feasible in the case of the remaining 2 ponds.