Third census of seabird populations of the Gaspé Peninsula, Québec, 2002

Abstract

In the tradition of the quinquennial census of seabirds in the Migratory Bird Sanctuaries along Quebec's North Shore, which began in 1925, this paper presents the results of the first three seabird censuses of the Gaspé Peninsula conducted in 1979, 1989, and 2002, with an emphasis on the third census and on changes in seabird populations that occurred between the second and third censuses. In 1979 the population of seabirds was estimated at 134 163 birds, and this increased 72% to 231 186 birds in 1989. The upward trend in population continued in the 1990s but less sharply. The 2002 census recorded 279 276 birds, a 21% increase over the second census. The seabird community of the Gaspé Peninsula comprises 14 species. In each of the three censuses, three species accounted for over 75% of the total seabird population: Northern Gannet, Black-legged Kittiwake, and Common Murre. Between 1989 and 2002, Common Eider, Northern Gannet, Great Cormorant, Ring-billed Gull, Razorbill, and Black Guillemot increased in numbers, whereas Herring Gull, Black-legged Kittiwake, and Common Tern all suffered declines. Populations for Double-crested Cormorant, Great Black-backed Gull, and Common Murre all remained stable. Very small populations (<25 birds) of Leach's Storm-Petrel and Atlantic Puffin have been recorded during the censuses at only one location, Bonaventure Island. In the 2002 census there were no petrels observed, neither of adults nor of active burrows.