Impact 1 - Trends
Adelie penguins, Cape Bird, Antarctica. Image - Phil Lyver
Trends in national and regional biodiversity on public and private land are known and understood, on the basis of best available definitions and descriptions for species and indices of ecological integrity.
Consistent biodiversity data from public and private land
We have worked with DOC and regional councils to establish nationally- and regionally-consistent, robust frameworks for measuring, analysing and interpreting change in the status of biodiversity at a range of spatial and temporal scales. This benefits public and private conservation initiatives, and underpins a wide range of land management decisions.
Some key findings from a nationwide assessment of indigenous forests on public conservation land from the first year of DOC’s Biodiversity Monitoring and Reporting System showed that:
- Deer and goats are common in very few forest sites, and are mostly uncommon. Overall, tree species that are palatable to introduced mammals have regenerated widely over the last decade, and show no evidence of recruitment failure.
- Four species of native birds are found on more than three-quarters of forested sites nationally.
- Invasive plants are generally uncommon in indigenous forests, although some species are widespread and merit more attention from managers.
The first-year results were used as the basis of KPIs in DOC’s 2012 Annual Report. An external audit evaluated DOC’s overall performance as ‘good’, and this was attributed in part to the evidence base provided by indicators used in the Biodiversity Monitoring and Reporting System. This evidence base will be used to help prioritise DOC’s management activities and to evaluate the effectiveness of local management.
Regional councils are seeking to use comparable indicators so that a national picture of biodiversity can emerge. These same indicators have also been used in some primary sectors (e.g. kiwifruit orchards) to compare how different management regimes affect bird populations. Many of the indicators make use of existing datasets. Where new datasets are needed, we are working with regional councils and DOC to coordinate, rather than duplicate, monitoring and data collection efforts.
This research is part of the Measuring Biodiversity Change portfolio, and was supported by Core funding, DOC, Envirolink and regional councils.
Climate change may benefit Adélie penguin colonies
We developed software to semi-automate the penguin counting and validation of aerial surveys, enabling experienced counters to rapidly assess the Adélie colonies, check other counters to ensure consistency, and save these counting efforts for future research work. Using satellite imagery it will now be possible to estimate the total number Adélie penguins in Antarctica and monitor changes across regions and time in response to sea ice conditions and anthropogenic activities (e.g. commercial fishing).
Colony size of Adélie penguins on Beaufort Island, in the southern Ross Sea, has increased as receding glaciers make more nesting habitat available. Dispersal rates of Beaufort Island birds to nearby colonies also declined as more nesting habitat became available. Analyses of aerial photography (beginning in 1958) and modern satellite imagery showed that colony size has varied with available habitat, but in the last decade both colony size and habitat availability have increased. In accord with glacial retreat, summer temperatures at nearby McMurdo Station have increased by ~0.50°C per decade since the mid1980s. These results concur with predictions that major ice shelves and glaciers will retreat rapidly elsewhere in the Antarctic, potentially leading to increased breeding habitat for Adélie penguins. The published paper captivated the news media, with research being reported by numerous news and science agencies around the globe.
This research is part of the Measuring Biodiversity Change portfolio, and was supported by MBIE contestable funding via a subcontract from NIWA.
New plant species and species status
Systematics staff continued to provide data on status and trends of native species for biodiversity managers. Publication of research (collaborative with DOC, University of Otago, Unitech) on the conservation status of lichens indigenous to New Zealand exemplifies our continued work in data deficient and threatened species with DOC. The list comprises 1799 formally accepted taxa, including 11 ‘Threatened’, 176 ‘At Risk’, and 975 ‘Data Deficient’. A further 636 taxa were considered ‘Not Threatened’. Five lichens may warrant further conservation attention once their taxonomic status is clarified.
This year, a revision of coastal cresses (Lepidium) recognised 11 new native species; all have high conservation values and are actively managed by DOC. Other new species include two new species of alpine Gingidia, a highly unusual Cardamine (bittercress) and a wire rush (Empodisma robustum) that is a dominant component of the rare and ecologically important domed peat bog habitats of the Waikato, and two new fern species (Hymenophyllum pluviatile and Gleichenia inclusisora). New additions to the New Zealand flora include an unknown moss collected on Stewart Island and identified as Tayloria tasmanica, a rare species previously only known from Tasmania, and a species of an Australian Centrolepsis bristlewort and two species of Sticherus umbrella ferns. These are significant new discoveries that will require monitoring and further survey by DOC.
The nationally significant Allan Herbarium plant collection is key to this research in the Defining Land Biota portfolio, and is Core funded.