Population trends and productivity of fulmars, cormorants, kittiwakes and murres in the Pribilof Islands, Alaska in 1985
Published By US Fish and Wildlife Service, Department of the Interior
Issued almost 10 years ago
Summary
Description
The amount of potentially disturbing activity in the vicinity of the Pribilof Islands and the legal mandates concerning protection of the seabird colonies there makes the area high priority for longterm monitoring. The available data on reproductive success for cormorants, murres, and kittiwakes is becoming sufficiently extensive to provide a basis for understanding some of the ecological principals of the southeastern Bering Sea. Already scientists have used this data set to formulate hypotheses about which factors cause fluctuations in reproductive success e.g. Hunt et al. 1981, Lloyd 1985. Only by understanding natural fluctuations can mancaused effects on the marine ecosystem be assessed. Information on annual reproductive success coupled with data on changes in populations will help managers understand the relationships between the two. We recommend that data on productivity and populations continue to be gathered annually for at least five more years at St. Paul and St. George. The intensity of the work should be similar to the 1985 effort for at least two more years and then reduced if evaluation of methods indicates less effort is needed to get the necessary information. Refuge personnel should conduct the annual monitoring, but independent research should be encouraged by other agencies or universities to address various questions about how the Pribilof ecosystem functions.