Fernanda Caminha Leal Valls

New southerly breeding location of king penguins (Aptenodytes patagonicus) on Elephant Island (Maritime Antarctic)

In the 2009–2010 austral summer, two breeding pairs of king penguins were recorded at Stinker Point, Elephant Island, Maritime Antarctic. This is the first record of king penguins breeding south of 60°S. The finding suggests a possible range extension of this species and increases the number of breeding bird species at Stinker Point, which was recently appointed as an Important Bird Area in Antarctica.

Evidence of an unreported negative effect of fisheries discards on seabirds: death by choking on the Atlantic Midshipman (Porichthys porosissimus) in southern Brazil

Abstract The effects of the fishing industry on the marine environment have been studied and described over the past two decades. Trawl-netting is a common but non-selective method of fishing that often captures non-target specimens of no commercial value that are discarded at sea. We discovered an unreported threat caused by fisheries discards on seabirds attending fishing activities in Brazilian waters: choking by feeding on discarded Atlantic Midshipman (Porichthys porosissimus). Over 6 years of monitoring (2007–13), we recorded five procellariiform species—Atlantic Yellow-nosed Albatross (Thalassarche chlororhynchos), Corys Shearwater (Calonectris diomedea), Sooty Shearwater (Ardenna grisea), Great Shearwater (Ardenna gravis) and Manx Shearwater (Puffinus puffinus)—dead on beaches with Atlantic Midshipman stuck in their throats and showing evidence of death by suffocation as a result of blockage of the airways through choking. This phenomenon has not been consistently described, and the consequences of the consumption of fishery discards by seabirds in Brazilian waters remain poorly understood.

DISTRIBUTION OF SEABIRD COLONIES IN STINKER POINT, ELEPHANT ISLAND

Stinker Point is located on Elephant Island. It presents an ice-free area where di erent seabird species breed during the austral summer. To evaluate the distribution of Antarctic seabird breeding sites, colonies and breeding groups were mapped into the study area. ere are breeding colonies of 13 species. Southern Giant Petrel Macronectes giganteus and Wilson’s Storm-petrel Oceanites oceanicus are the species with most breeding groups mapped, totaling 10 of both species, followed by Cape Petrel Daption capense with nine breeding groups recorded. e high number of species observed in Stiker Point con rms the signi cance of this area as an Important Bird Area in Antarctica (IBA 071).

Short Note: Unusual breeding site for kelp gulls on Deception Island, Antarctica

Unusual breeding site for kelp gulls on Deception Island, Antarctica ELISA DE SOUZA PETERSEN, FERNANDA CAMINHA LEAL VALLS, GUSTAVO FRANCISCO AVER and MARIA VIRGINIA PETRY INCT-APA Instituto Nacional de Ciência e Tecnologia Antártico de Pesquisas Ambientais Universidade de São Paulo, Laboratório de Química Inorgânica Marinha, Praça do Oceanográfico, 191, 05508120, São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil Universidade do Vale do Rio dos Sinos, Laboratório de Ornitologia e Animais Marinhos, Av. Unisinos, 950, 93022000, São Leopoldo, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil elisapetersen@yahoo.com.br