Journal article
Predictive habitat modelling to estimate petrel breeding colony sizes: Sooty shearwaters (Puffinus griseus) and mottled petrels (Pterodroma inexpectata) on Whenua Hou Island
D Scott, H Moller, D Fletcher, J Newman, J Aryal, C Bragg, K Charleton
New Zealand Journal of Zoology | TAYLOR & FRANCIS LTD | Published : 2009
Abstract
Between 2001 and 2006, we systematically sampled the entire coast of Whenua Hou, a rugged offshore island in southern New Zealand, to estimate the population densities of sooty shearwaters (Puffinus griseus) and mottled petrels (Pterodroma inexpectata) by counting the entrances of breeding burrows. A two-step regression modelling process using binomial errors was used to predict the presence of a colony, and a normal general linear model was used to predict the density of entrances within colonies. Aerial photography, GIS and a Digital Elevation Model were used to extract relevant habitat and location variables, and a combination of both regression models was used to predict the density of b..
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Funding Acknowledgements
We thank other members of the Kia Mau Te Titi Mo Ake Tonu Atu Research team and other fieldworkers who helped collect data: Natasha Fijn, Mitch Bartlett, Pete Lei, and the Department of Conservation staff on Whenua Hou. The New Zealand Foundation for Research, Science and Technology and the University of Otago provided financial support. We are grateful to the Rakiura Titi Islands Administrating Body, Southland Department of Conservation and the Whenua Hou Management Committee for allowing access to restricted areas of the island. Jessica Lach and Ben Knight, two anonymous referees and then wonderful editing by Carolyn King greatly improved earlier drafts of the manuscript.