Seabirds can travel thousands of miles from rookeries to pelagic foraging grounds; however, little is known about their at-sea foraging habitat. This project identifies ocean foraging habitats of seabirds worldwide, investigates the relationship of these areas with oceanographic conditions and evaluates overlap with longline fisheries. In October 2012, researchers on this project released the "e-Atlas of Marine Important Bird Areas".
In 2008, the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) 9th Conference of the Parties approved a set of criteria for identifying Ecologically or Biologically Significant Areas (EBSAs), a crucial step in protecting marine habitats and biodiversity. A series of regional workshops began in 2011 to describe areas that meet these EBSA criteria. This research summary details why seabird data are especially useful in such conservation planning exercises.
Download PDF: Seabird Data for Describing Marine Conservation Areas (April 2012)
Link to the e-Atlas (October 2012)
April, 2012
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