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Summary
This report is part of an ongoing long-term study of the black petrel, Procellaria parkinsoni, on Great Barrier Island (Aotea Island) that was begun in the 1995/96 breeding season.
During the 2007/08 breeding season, 379 study burrows within the 35-ha study site near Mount Hobson (Hirakimata) were checked and intensively monitored. Of these, 256 were used by breeding pairs, 65 by nonbreeding adults and the remaining 58 burrows were empty.
By 13 April 2008, 190 chicks were still present in the study burrows and eight had already fledged, corresponding to a breeding success of 77%.
Nine census grids were monitored within the study area and accounted for 148 of the inspected burrows, with 91 burrows being used for breeding.
Twenty-seven chicks from earlier breeding seasons were recaptured within the Mount Hobson colony area this season (a total of 67 ‘returned chicks’ have been caught since the 1999/2000 season).
Analysis of the census grid data estimated the black petrel population from the 35-ha area around Mount Hobson to be in the range of 3342–4130 birds.
Twenty-eight Lotek™ geo-locator data-loggers were deployed on breeding black petrels. Eight were retrieved for tracking analysis (to determine foraging locations and possible interaction with fisheries) and the remaining loggers were left for retrieval after the birds’ migration to South America and return to the colony in the following (2008/09) breeding season.