Abstract:The Eastern Cape population of the Damara Tern Sternula balaenarum was estimated to be 25-29 pairs in the 2008/09 and 2009/10 breeding seasons. The population appears to be stable and has probably increased slightly since the early 1990s. An eastward shift of the majority of nest sites in the Alexandria dunefields of 5-10 km was recorded since the early 1990s. Breeding Damara Terns caught at night and colour-flagged in the Alexandria dunefields averaged 12% heavier than the average mass of birds handled in Nam… Show more
“…In South Africa, in addition to shifts to the south and east of the three 'guanoproducing' seabirds reported in the previous section, there were decreased proportions of birds breeding in the north and increases in the south for Bank Cormorant P. neglectus, White-breasted Cormorant P. lucidus, Crowned Cormorant Microcarbo coronatus, Kelp Gull Larus dominicanus, Greater Crested (Swift) Tern Thalasseus bergii and Damara Tern Sternula balaenarum [29][30][31][32][33][34][35]. There is little or no competition by White-breasted and Crowned Cormorants, Kelp Gulls and Damara Terns with fisheries for forage resources [36], so environmental change may have influenced the redistributions of the seabirds [33].…”
The Benguela Current is used by c. 82 seabird species, of which seven are endemic to it. Eggs and guano of formerly abundant seabirds were heavily harvested in the 19th and 20th centuries but decreases in seabird populations led to cessation of these industries at islands. Guano is still scraped from platforms. Seabird ecotourism has grown. There were large recent decreases in numbers of African Penguins Spheniscus demersus, Cape Gannets Morus capensis and Cape Phalacrocorax capensis and Bank P. neglectus Cormorants and redistributions of these other species away from the centre of the Benguela ecosystem towards its northern or eastern boundaries. In 2020, seabirds endemic to the Benguela ecosystem and albatrosses and petrels migrating into it had high proportions of globally Near Threatened or Threatened species. The primary threat to four Endangered endemic birds was scarcity of forage resources. A Vulnerable endemic damara tern was susceptible to habitat degradation and disturbance. The principal threat to visiting albatrosses and petrels was by-catch mortality. Identification and effective protection of Important Bird Area breeding and marine foraging and aggregation sites, and a suite of complementary measures, are needed to conserve the seabirds and ensure continuation of their economic and ecosystem benefits into the future.
“…In South Africa, in addition to shifts to the south and east of the three 'guanoproducing' seabirds reported in the previous section, there were decreased proportions of birds breeding in the north and increases in the south for Bank Cormorant P. neglectus, White-breasted Cormorant P. lucidus, Crowned Cormorant Microcarbo coronatus, Kelp Gull Larus dominicanus, Greater Crested (Swift) Tern Thalasseus bergii and Damara Tern Sternula balaenarum [29][30][31][32][33][34][35]. There is little or no competition by White-breasted and Crowned Cormorants, Kelp Gulls and Damara Terns with fisheries for forage resources [36], so environmental change may have influenced the redistributions of the seabirds [33].…”
The Benguela Current is used by c. 82 seabird species, of which seven are endemic to it. Eggs and guano of formerly abundant seabirds were heavily harvested in the 19th and 20th centuries but decreases in seabird populations led to cessation of these industries at islands. Guano is still scraped from platforms. Seabird ecotourism has grown. There were large recent decreases in numbers of African Penguins Spheniscus demersus, Cape Gannets Morus capensis and Cape Phalacrocorax capensis and Bank P. neglectus Cormorants and redistributions of these other species away from the centre of the Benguela ecosystem towards its northern or eastern boundaries. In 2020, seabirds endemic to the Benguela ecosystem and albatrosses and petrels migrating into it had high proportions of globally Near Threatened or Threatened species. The primary threat to four Endangered endemic birds was scarcity of forage resources. A Vulnerable endemic damara tern was susceptible to habitat degradation and disturbance. The principal threat to visiting albatrosses and petrels was by-catch mortality. Identification and effective protection of Important Bird Area breeding and marine foraging and aggregation sites, and a suite of complementary measures, are needed to conserve the seabirds and ensure continuation of their economic and ecosystem benefits into the future.
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