Observations of avifauna on Rēkohu / Wharekauri / Chatham Island, Chatham Islands group, in February 2024
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Other Title
Authors
Klein, Rachel R.
Coyle, Hannah
Flower, Renee
Heath, Clay D.
James, Campbell
Mae, S.
Rear, Sophie
O'Brien, Shannon
Tapp, Amelia
Thia, Dayna
Tuanui-Chisolm, H.
de Lange, Peter
Baling, Marleen
Coyle, Hannah
Flower, Renee
Heath, Clay D.
James, Campbell
Mae, S.
Rear, Sophie
O'Brien, Shannon
Tapp, Amelia
Thia, Dayna
Tuanui-Chisolm, H.
de Lange, Peter
Baling, Marleen
Degree
Grantor
Date
2025-05-15
Supervisors
Type
Journal Article
Ngā Upoko Tukutuku (Māori subject headings)
Keyword
Rēkohu / Wharekauri
Chatham Islands (N.Z.)
Aotearoa
New Zealand
birds
surveys
Chatham Islands (N.Z.)
Aotearoa
New Zealand
birds
surveys
ANZSRC Field of Research Code (2020)
Citation
K.lein, R. R., Coyle, H., Flower, R., Heath, C. D., James, C., Mae, S., Rear, S., O’Brien, S., Tapp, A., Thia, D., Tuanui-Chisholm, H., de Lange, P. J., Baling, M. (2025). Observations of avifauna on Rēkohu / Wharekauri / Chatham Island, Chatham Islands group, in February 2024. Perspectives in Biodiversity, 3(1): 1–14.
https://doi.org/10.34074/pibdiv.003101
Abstract
This study examines the avifauna of Rēkohu / Wharekauri / Chatham Islands, a remote island group harbouring a diverse range of endemic, indigenous and introduced bird species. Here we report the avifauna observations from a Unitec visit to Rēkohu (8−17 February 2024). During the ten-day trip, avifauna were recorded from 33 locations. Species diversity was compared between species using the Shannon diversity index and species evenness. Forty avian species were encountered, most commonly in open farmland and coastal environments. The common starling (Sturnus vulgaris vulgaris) and black swan (Cygnus atratus) were the most frequently observed. Species diversity in 2024 was lower than in the avian survey conducted by Unitec in 2023 (H=2.35 vs. H=2.67), likely due to a few species dominating overall counts (E=0.64 vs. E=0.73). There were six times more black swans (n=871) and three times more starlings (n=971) than in the 2023 survey, likely due to favourable weather conditions and increased observer effort in 2024. In contrast, we noted a significant decrease (70.4%, n=50) in white-fronted terns (Sterna striata) in 2024 in comparison to 2023. Motuhinahina Island had lower species diversity in 2024 than in 2023 (H=1.07 vs. H=1.73), although we had new recordings of white-faced herons (Egretta novaehollandiae) and silvereye (Zosterops lateralis lateralis), the latter identified from a nest seen on the island. Counts of Pitt Island shag (Phalacrocorax featherstoni) and Chatham Island shag (Leucocarbo onslowi) on Motuhinahina and Shag Rock were consistent with 2023 survey counts. Kōpī Bush exhibited higher avian diversity than the smaller Motuhinahina (H=1.75 vs. H=1.07). Throughout Rēkohu, uncommon species, such as feral greylag geese (Anser anser), feral chickens (Gallus gallus gallus), kingfisher (Todiramphus sanctus vagans), and yellowhammer (Emberiza citronella), were recorded in low numbers. Emu (Dromaius novaehollandiae) were also encountered, confirming their continued presence on the island. Our findings highlight the importance of continued monitoring to understand changes in Rēkohu’s avifauna and provide valuable baseline data for future research and conservation efforts.
Publisher
Unitec ePress
Permanent link
Link to ePress publication
DOI
https://doi.org/10.34074/pibdiv.003101
Copyright holder
Authors
Copyright notice
CC BY-NC Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International