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Assessing colonies of Antarctic shags by unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) at South Shetland Islands, Antarctica

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  14 January 2021

Christian Pfeifer Open the ORCID record for Christian Pfeifer [Opens in a new window] ,
Marie-Charlott Rümmler Open the ORCID record for Marie-Charlott Rümmler [Opens in a new window]  and
Osama Mustafa Open the ORCID record for Osama Mustafa [Opens in a new window]
Christian Pfeifer*
Affiliation:
Thuringian Institute of Sustainability and Climate Protection (ThINK), Leutragraben 1, 07743Jena, Germany
Marie-Charlott Rümmler
Affiliation:
Thuringian Institute of Sustainability and Climate Protection (ThINK), Leutragraben 1, 07743Jena, Germany
Osama Mustafa
Affiliation:
Thuringian Institute of Sustainability and Climate Protection (ThINK), Leutragraben 1, 07743Jena, Germany
*
christian.pfeifer@think-jena.de
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Abstract

Due to the remote location of colonies of Antarctic shags (Phalacrocorax (atriceps) bransfieldensis) in Antarctica, there is only sparse data on the abundance of this species. An unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) survey for known and unknown Antarctic shag colonies along the coasts of Nelson Island and western King George Island, Antarctica, was conducted in December 2016. Four colonies, one of them previously unknown, were detected. For the first time since the 1980s, the total population size of the colonies in that area was determined. A comparison with previous estimates revealed evidence of a population increase by a factor of 2.86. To support future survey campaigns, several characteristic features of Antarctic shag colonies, nests and individuals in aerial imagery were identified. This makes possible more reliable detection and determination of population size in Antarctic shag colonies. These characteristic features were compared with those of chinstrap penguin colonies (Pygoscelis antarcticus) because these species often overlap spatially and are difficult to distinguish. In addition, the optimal weather conditions and flight parameters for an aerial survey were specified.

Keywords

abundancedronesKing George IslandmonitoringPhalacrocorax bransfieldensisshags
Type
Biological Sciences
Information
Antarctic Science , Volume 33 , Issue 2 , April 2021 , pp. 133 - 149
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Copyright
Copyright © Antarctic Science Ltd 2021

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