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Far too many of the Hauraki Gulf region’s diverse seabird breeds are threatened with extinction due to over-fishing and habitat damage, according to a new report released last week.
The State of our Seabirds 2021 says threats such as predators, pollution, disease, climate change, development and food depletion are having a serious impact on bird populations, with some in steep decline.
Probably the best known and the most endangered is the NZ fairy tern, or tara iti, which is down to only 39 birds breeding at just four local sites – Waipu, Mangawhai, Pakiri and South Kaipara Head. But the new report, produced by the Northern NZ Seabird Trust and Hauraki Gulf Forum, says other breeds are not far behind, including spotted shags, which are “hanging on in three small colonies”, as well as a number of other tern, gull and shag species in decline or losing nesting sites.
Gulf Forum co-chairs Nicola MacDonald (tangata whenua) and Pippa Coom (Auckland Council) say in the report’s foreword that the Hauraki Gulf remains a globally significant seabird biodiversity hotspot, including five endemic species – black petrel/tākoketai, Pycroft’s petrel/tīti, Buller’s shearwater/rako, NZ storm petrel and New Zealand fairy tern/tara-iti.
“This is remarkable given its proximity to the country’s largest city,” they say. “However, far too many of our seabirds remain under threat or, in the case of the NZ fairy tern/tara-iti, at dire risk of extinction.”
They say that while there are pressures from human activities on land, it is at sea where conditions are changing fastest, with once productive feeding grounds under serious pressure from commercial and recreational fishing.
“While some gains have been made to reduce the threat of seabirds being caught as by-catch while foraging, the depletion of food in the nearby marine environment is having a significant impact,” they say. “With all this, and the increasing impacts of climate change, our seabirds are telling us that a perfect storm is brewing.”
Northern NZ Seabird Trust’s project coordinator, Chris Gaskin, says the Hauraki Gulf Forum’s 2020 State of our Gulf report highlighted ongoing environmental degradation facing the gulf’s marine park, with this now mirrored in the decline of seabirds nesting along its coastal fringes.
Chris, who lives at Ti Point, says it’s important for local communities to be aware of the importance of the region’s diverse seabird population and the pressures they are facing.
“It’s along these coastal fringes that seabird populations have declined quite dramatically due to predation and other land-based threats, but it’s also pressures on the marine ecosystem,” he said. “That’s why we’ve got to keep a close watch on them.”
He says ongoing monitoring of seabirds in the Gulf is necessary to refine knowledge of critical habitats and to manage commercial and recreational activities appropriately.
“Monitoring how well those species are doing will provide us with warning signs if things start to go seriously wrong with the overall health of the Gulf.”
The report includes a set of measures or indicators that will be evaluated in five and 10 years’ time.
While there is some good news, with increases in several populations through successful eradication of predators from islands in the outer Gulf, most of these species feed in offshore waters well outside the region.
The State of our Seabirds 2021 can be found at https://gulfjournal.org.nz/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/SOOS-screen.pdf
