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Status of Red-footed Boobies Sula sula on Little Cayman, British West Indies

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  11 May 2010

Frederic J. Burton ,
Patricia E. Bradley ,
Elizabeth A. Schreiber ,
Gary A. Schenk  and
Richard W. Burton
Frederic J. Burton
Affiliation:
National Trust for the Cayman Islands, P. O. Box 31116 SMB, Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands.
Patricia E. Bradley
Affiliation:
P. O. Box 907 GT, Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands.
Elizabeth A. Schreiber
Affiliation:
The Ornithological Council, 4109 Komoc Court, Alexandra, VA 22306, U.S.A.
Gary A. Schenk
Affiliation:
4109 Komoc Court, Alexandra, VA 22306, U.S.A.
Richard W. Burton
Affiliation:
2 Madeira Park, Tunbridge Wells, Kent TN2 5SU, U.K.
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Abstract

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Summary

The island of Little Cayman, in the north-west Caribbean, supports a large breeding colony of Red-footed Boobies Sula sula, within a Ramsar site, the Booby Pond Nature Reserve, protected and managed by the National Trust for the Cayman Islands. Comparison of aerial photographs from 1994 and 1997 shows the colony area unchanged over this time period, occupying 16.5 ha. Area sampling yielded an estimate of 4,839 nesting pairs on Little Cayman in 1997, representing c. 30% of the entire Caribbean population for this species. Low mortality and excellent condition of chicks indicated a very successful breeding year with good food availability. Aerial photography proved to be an effective tool for determining the colony area but nests visible on these images did not correlate sufficiently well with ground data to be considered a viable basis for population monitoring. The 1997 census will serve as an important baseline, as Little Cayman is on the brink of explosive real estate development which is likely to have a severe impact on the island's natural resources over the next decade.

Type
Research Article
Information
Bird Conservation International , Volume 9 , Issue 3 , September 1999 , pp. 227 - 233
Copyright
Copyright © Birdlife International 1999

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