Adelie penguin foraging trip duration records for Bechervaise Island, Mawson since 1991-92. Data include average male and female foraging trip durations for both the guard and creche stages of the breeding season. Data based on records of tagged birds crossing the APMS for in and out crossings. Durations determined from difference between out and in crossings in conjunction with nest census records. Data included only for birds which were known to be foraging for a live chick. This work was completed as part of ASAC Project 2205, Adelie penguin research and monitoring in support of the CCAMLR Ecosystem Monitoring Project. The fields in this dataset are: Year trip duration (hours) Mean , standard error, count and standard deviation for male and female foraging trips during guard and creche stages of the breeding season.

Metadata record for data from ASAC Project 106 See the link below for public details on this project. From the abstracts of some of the referenced papers: This paper reports the results of the first aerial photographic survey of Adelie penguin colonies in the Prydz Bay region. The area surveyed extended from the northern Vestfold Hills to the Publications Ice Shelf. More than 325,000 pairs of Adelie penguins were estimated to be breeding in this region in 1981/82. The great majority of breeding Adelie penguins occurred in the northern half of the region surveyed, in the Vestfold hills and Rauer Islands, where most colonies were located. This is probably due to the typical pattern of summer sea-ice dispersal, which usually results in sea-ice leaving the northern areas of the coast first. Prydz Bay supports nine seabird species that breed on the Princess Elizabeth Land coast: two penguins, six Procellariiformes and one skua. Information on their diet is reviewed. Apart from the scavenging South Polar Skua Catharacta maccormicki and Southern Giant Petrel Macronectes giganteus, three diet types were distinguished. First, the Emperor Penguin Aptenodytes forsteri ate almost exclusively fish; secondly the Adelie Penguin Pygoscelis adeliae, Cape Petrel Daption capense, and Wilson's Storm Petrel Oceanites oceanicus consumed at least 60% euphausiid, the remainder largely fish; and thirdly, a diet of greater than 60% fish, the rest euphausiids, was taken by the Southern Fulmar Fulmarus glacialoides, Antarctic Petrel Thalassoica antarctica and Snow Petrel Pagodroma nivea. Seasonal fluctuation in composition of Adelie Penguin, Cape Petrel and Southern Fulmar diet suggested either fluctuating foraging ranges or movement of Euphausia superba inshore during summer months. Annual fluctuation in diet composition was correlated with seabird reproductive success. When E. crystallorophias dominated the euphausiid component of Adelie Penguin diet, reproductive success was high; when E. superba was scarce in Prydz Bay, Antarctic Petrel and Southern Fulmar productivity was low. Breeding phenology, success and nest attendance of Antarctic Petrels Thalassoica antarctica and Southern Fulmars Fulmarus glacialoides at the Rauer Group, East Antarctica, are discussed. Most data were collected on Hop Island in January and February 1988, and from December 1988 to March 1989. Observations extended from the late stages of incubation to post-guard or fledging periods. Some annual breeding indices collected from 1983 onwards at census sites are compared with meteorological data and the extent of fast ice for the nearby Davis Station. Both species had a restricted hatching period, reflecting a brief and synchronised egg-laying period, reflecting a brief and synchronised egg-laying period, typical of other southern fulmarine petrels. Antarctic Petrel chicks hatched from 4 January (1989) and c. 90% appeared by 16 January (both years). Southern Fulmar hatching began on 21 January (1988) and almost all chicks appeared by 6 February (both years). Adult attendance at nests declined with increasing chick age. For Antarctic Petrels, this was most marked at about 11 days; no chicks had continuously attendant adults after 24 days, although adults returned to feed them. Incubation shifts following hatching and the post-guard period started, on average, 13 days after hatching. Egg and chick losses varied between years and sites. The South Polar Skua Catharacta maccormicki was apparently involved in the majority of losses. Nest sites of both species resemble those elsewhere: Southern Fulmars may require steeper sites, allowing a fall away from colonies. Antarctic Petrels are less affected by accumulation of snow or ice and shelter from katabatic winds may be important. Although weather may modify breeding success locally, annual success must depend on the ability of parents to produce eggs and feed chicks: this may be moderated by the extent and persistence of pack ice. Annual chick productivity and breeding success, recorded at four Adelie penguin, Pygoscelis adeliae, colonies at Magnetic Island in eastern Prydz Bay, are presented for the seven breeding seasons 1981/82 to 1987/88. The adult breeding population remained relatively stable during the first 4 years of the study, and increased in hte last 2 years. Substantial annual variation in breeding success occurred over the study period, ranging between an estimated 0.69 and 1.33 chicks surviving until late creche stage per nest for seasons 1985/86 and 1982/83 respectively. Annual patterns of chick productivity in southern fulmar, Fulmarus glacialoides, and Antarctic petrel, Thalassoica antarctica, populations within Prydz Bay were synchronous with those of Adelie penguins. In the years of highest and lowest reproductive performance, prey abundance within the likely foraging areas was correspondingly high and low. Reproductive performance was greatest in years when fast-ice breakout occurred before the end of December (1981/82, 1982/83. 1986/87 and 1987/88) and lowest when the breakout was after (1983/84, 1984/85 and 1985/86) and pack-ice cover persisted within the foraging range of the birds during the chick-rearing period.

Adelie penguin breeding success records for Bechervaise Island, Mawson since 1990-91. Data include counts of occupied nests and chick counts when either 2/3 of the nests have creched or when all nests have creched. Breeding success values are calculated as the number of chicks per occupied nest. Breeding Success = the number of chicks raised to fledging per nest with eggs Breeding success is calculated from four different whole island counts: 1) the number of incubating nests (i.e. the number of nest with eggs) - 'incubating nest count' 2) the number of brooding nests (i.e. the number of nests brooding chicks) - 'brooding chick count' 3) the number of chicks present when 2/3 of the nests have creched their chicks - '2/3-creche count' 4) the number of chicks present when all the nests have creche their chicks - 'fully-creche count' Each colony on the island is manually counted by field observers, using 'counters', three times each. Counts within 10% of each other are used to average the number of nests or chicks for each colony and then in later calculations to determine breeding success. Incubating nest counts are conducted on or about 2nd December; Brooding chick counts are conducted on or about the 7th January; 2/3-creche counts on or about the 19th January; and Fully-creche chick counts on or about 26th January. Whole island 2/3-creche and fully-creche chick count dates are determined from calculating when 2/3 and all study nests in the census area (study colonies) have creche their chicks. This work was completed as part of ASAC Project 2205, Adelie penguin research and monitoring in support of the CCAMLR Ecosystem Monitoring Project. The fields in this dataset are: Year Breeding success Occupied nests

This dataset includes Adelie penguin colonies and coastline digitised from Eric J. Woehler, G.W. Johnstone and Harry R. Burton, 'ANARE Research Notes 71, The distribution and abundance of Adelie penguins, Pygoscelis adeliae, in the Mawson area and at the Rookery Islands (Specially Protected Area 2), 1981 and 1988'. Copies of the maps as PDF and TIFF downloads are available through the SCAR Map Catalogue (see the links in the related links section). Map 1 [Mawson area, including the Rookery Islands SPA] Map 2 [Rookery Islands SPA] Map 3 [Islands near Mawson Station] Map 4 [Rookery Island 1] Map 5 [Rookery Island 2] Map 6 [Rookery Island 3] Map 7 [Rookery Island 3A] Map 8 [Rookery Island 4] Map 9 [Rookery Island 5] Map 10 [Rookery Island 6] Map 11 [Rookery Island 7] Map 13 [Rookery Island 9] Map 14 [Rookery Island 10 and 11] Map 15 [Giganteus Island] Map 16 [Rookery Island] Map 17 [Bechervaise Island] Map 18 [Verner Island] Map 19 [Petersen Island] Map 20 [Welch Island Sheet 1 of 2] Map 20 [Welch Island Sheet 2 of 2] Map 21 [Klung Island] Map 22 [Un-named island west of Klung Island] Map 23 [Gibbney Island] Map 24 [Un-named island west of Forbes Glacier] Map 25 [Islands surveyed in 1981-82 where Adelie penguin colonies were located]

June 2018 Adélie penguin scats were collected from Signy Island (South Orkney Islands) during crèche (December/January) 2014/15 and 2015/16 and stored in 80% Ethanol. DNA was extracted from ~30 mg of faecal material using a Promega ‘Maxwell 16' instrument and a Maxwell® 16 Tissue DNA kit. A total of 450 samples were analysed: 30 extractions per week for 2015 and 60 per week for samples collected in 2016. Three DNA markers providing different taxonomic information were amplified from penguin faecal DNA. First, ALL faecal DNA samples were characterised using a highly conserved metazoan primer set that amplifies a region of the nuclear 18S gene. In addition, a subset of faecal samples from each year were also characterised with two other primer pairs that amplify a region of the mtDNA 16S gene to allow species-level identification for most fish (16S_Fish) and krill (16S_Krill) species respectively. During amplification of markers, the products were tagged with a unique pair of index primers allowing samples to be pooled and sequenced (2x150bp) on a MiSeq high-throughput DNA sequencer. - See Adelie Pengiun Diet CCAMLR paper for all of the primer/PCR details - See BAS Adelie 18s Krill and Fish subset excel spreadsheet for sample details. - See BAS Adelie 18s ALL samples fastq for 18s fastq files - See BAS Adelie 16s Krill subset fastq for 16s krill fastq files - See BAS Adelie Fish subset fastq for 16s fish fastq files ##################################################################################### November 2018 In addition we also amplified all 450 samples with the 16S_Fish marker. - See Adelie Experiment Details 16s Fish for sample details, plate layout, first and second round PCR and miseq sheet. - See BAS Adelie Fish ALL Samples fastq for 16s fish fastq files

This dataset comprises a table and set of maps of all geographic sites of ice-free land along the East Antarctica coastline between longitudes 37°E and 160°E. Each geographic site comprises a discrete area of ice-free land and includes islands within 100 km of the coast and outcrops of ice free continental rock within 1 km of the coast. The geographic sites were identified in a geographic information system using polygons sourced from the AAT Coastline 2003 dataset produced by Geoscience Australia and the Australian Antarctic Division, and exposed rock polygons sourced from the Antarctic Digital Database version 4.0 produced for the Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research. The maps are grouped into sub-regions and regions, with multiple maps in most sub-regions. The maps were designed to be of a scale that could be used in the field to identify sites by their shape and location. This dataset has previously been used in the specific context of potential breeding habitat for Adelie penguins (doi:10.4225/15/5758F4EC91665) but has potential for broader use in a wide range of ecological and environmental studies. 2021-06-30 - an updated copy of the spatial reference system spreadsheet was uploaded. The update was only minor.

This indicator is no longer maintained, and is considered OBSOLETE. INDICATOR DEFINITION Demographic parameters for the Adelie penguin at Bechervaise Island near Mawson. TYPE OF INDICATOR There are three types of indicators used in this report: 1.Describes the CONDITION of important elements of a system; 2.Show the extent of the major PRESSURES exerted on a system; 3.Determine RESPONSES to either condition or changes in the condition of a system. This indicator is one of: CONDITION RATIONALE FOR INDICATOR SELECTION The Adelie penguin is a relatively long lived sea bird dependent on krill. It is expected that major changes in the availability of food (krill) to sea birds will be reflected ultimately in recruitment into the breeding population. Causes of changes in the availability of krill relate directly to changes in both the biological and physical environment brought about by man made or natural means. Ageing populations may give an outward appearance of stability in terms of numbers at a breeding colony but such a condition may mask a decline in recruitment. To determine whether there are environmental influences on the population it is necessary to undertake detailed demographic studies. Demographic studies carried out over many years on animal populations comprising known age cohorts are required to determine those factors responsible for any observed changes in recruitment and/or mortality. Population reconstruction techniques provide estimates of recruitment and mortality and relate these functions to population size and/or population trends. These studies may alert us to possible changes in the ecosystem particularly related to the availability of food to the penguins or changes to the physical environment. The identification of the cause of changes must come from detailed investigations of food availability and the environment carried out at the same time. Annual breeding success at Bechervaise Island (eggs laid to chicks fledged) varies enormously from 0 in catastrophic years to above 1 for good seasons. The population at Bechervaise Island near Mawson has been monitored since 1990 as part of the CCAMLR Ecosystem Monitoring Program. Chicks and adults have been tagged annually. The number of breeding pairs has increased slightly between 1990-2001, but changes in the non -breeding population are unknown. Demographic studies based on the return rate of birds tagged as chicks provide information on trends in the overall population and the net rate of recruitment. Since it is intended that this program be undertaken indefinitely it makes this population an excellent subject for monitoring in the context of the SOE. DESIGN AND STRATEGY FOR INDICATOR MONITORING PROGRAM Spatial Scale: Restricted to the Mawson region. Similar studies are carried out by other national research programs at Terra Nova Bay (Italy) and on the Antarctic Peninsula (USA). Frequency: Annual Measurement Technique: The Adelie penguin population at Bechervaise Island consists of approximately 1800 breeding pairs. Each breeding season since 1990/91 in excess of 250 chicks have been given implanted electronic identification tags. The return of birds to their natal colony has been detected automatically by the Automated Penguin Monitoring System (APMS)or by checking all birds with a hand held tag reader. Additional and associated biological data as prescribed by CCAMLR (1997 are collected to aid interpretation of demographic and other trends. To detect trends in the population size and in demographic parameters, particularly of recruitment, it will be necessary to maintain an annual tagging program of chicks and recording of all tagged birds. RESEARCH ISSUES comprehensive analysis of the data collected over the duration of this study is required to determine natural variation and potential anthropogenic influences affecting Adelie penguin population dynamics. LINKS TO OTHER INDICATORS Sea-ice extent and concentration.

Penguin counts conducted between 25 November and 2 December 1997. The census covered the following areas and rookeries in the Cape Dension area: rookeries north of Gadget Hut, outside Greenholm Hut and both sides of harbour, Penguin Knob, Azimuth Hill, Memorial Hill, Lands End Ridge, below Sorensen's Hut, east of Sorensen's Hut. A total of 24542 penguins were censused for the Cape Denison area, excluding McKellar Island Rookeries. The fields in this dataset are: Area Rookery locations Number

Adelie penguin census November - December 1999 by Jim and Yvonne Claypole following their winter at Cape Denison. A shapefile with the colony boundaries is available but counts are not available. On 2 March 2016 David Smith of the Australian Antarctic Data Centre contacted Jim Claypole to see if he and Yvonne still had a copy of the counts as the Australian Antarctic Data Centre does not have a copy of the counts. Jim and Yvonne recall emailing the results of their survey to the Australian Antarctic Division soon after returning to Australia after wintering at Cape Denison in 1999. On 11 April 2016 Jim Claypole advised David that unfortunately they had not been able to find any record of their survey and they didn't have emails from that time.

Intermittent Adelie penguin population counts for Bechervaise, Verner and Petersen Islands, Mawson since 1971. Data include counts of occupied nests for the post 1990/91 data conducted on or about 2nd December. Data collected prior to this were obtained from ANARE Research Notes or field note books. These counts may not have been performed at the 'optimal' time for occupied nests counts, and when this is the case have been adjusted according to a 'correction' factor. The post 1990/91 data were completed as part of ASAC Project 2205, Adelie penguin research and monitoring in support of the CCAMLR Ecosystem Monitoring Project. The fields in this dataset are: Year Bechervaise Island Counts Verner Island Counts Petersen Island Counts Date Season occ nests (occupied nests)