Falklands Conservation

NEWS FROM THE FALKLANDS

A field survey to establish the size of the Falkland population of this near threatened bird of prey has completed its first season's work. The Falkland Islands hold most of the world's population of the Striated Caracara, known locally as the 'Johnny Rook'. Its reputation for attacking sheep and lambs has meant that it has been widely persecuted by farmers and is believed to have lead to a serious decline in numbers. Today it breeds almost exclusively on remote offshore islands where it depends on colonial seabirds for most of its food.

In October and November a small team of expert observers, under the leadership of Robin Woods (author of Guide to Birds of the Falklands and Atlas of Breeding Birds of the Falkland Islands), visited 26 islands off West Falkland where Johnny Rooks were thought to breed. Each island was covered on foot, often tackling difficult terrain of dense tussac grass formation and rocky coastline. Robin Woods reports "The Jason Islands Group are almost certainly the stronghold for this species in the Falkland archipelago. Diving petrels, shags, prions and upland geese seem to form a substantial part of their diet on different islands here, which are not stocked with sheep".

The survey will be completed next year when it is hoped to include a visit to remote Beauchene Island. It is funded by the Falkland Islands Government.

Given the variety and quality of Falkland wetlands they deserve international recognition and protection. Falklands Conservation has obtained the services of Michael Smart, formerly Senior Policy Advisor at the Ramsar Bureau in Switzerland to progress obtaining international status for its important wetland sites under the Ramsar Convention (signed up to by over 100 governments). He is being supported by grant aid from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and assisted by Paul St Pierre of the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds.

In cooperation with local land owners they are assessing a number of sites in the Islands which are thought to qualify for designation (initially Pebble Island East, Bertha's Beach, Lake Sulivan, Hawk's Nest Pond and Sea Lion Island). Early in the New Year a report will be presented to the Falkland Islands Government which will assist them in making recommendations to the UK Government (who ratified the Convention in 1976 on behalf of the UK and several of its Dependent Territories including the Falklands) for the chosen areas to be "listed".

A key element in safeguarding wildlife for hydrocarbon exploitation in the Falkland Islands has been the requirement to obtain data on the movements and distribution of seabirds and mammals at sea. This is largely unknown at present, and particularly urgent for the northern tranches which have already been awarded licences for exploration.

Four international oil companies (Shell, Amerada Hess, International Petroleum Corporation and Lasmo) have now agreed to fund this work under the management of Falklands Conservation. Starting with the placement of a trained observer on a survey vessel, the UK's Joint Nature Conservation Committee "Seabirds at Sea Team" will be working over the next year with Falklands Conservation to gather information at sea. Priority will be to identify those marine areas associated with feeding, breeding and migration for seabirds, seals and cetaceans to determine their distribution and abundance at each season of the year. In addition to observations, a penguin tagging programme will be undertaken to give more specific information on the habits of these flightless and vulnerable birds, for which the Falklands is such an important stronghold.

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