2020 Conservation Outlook Assessment
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IUCN World Heritage Outlook: https://worldheritageoutlook.iucn.org/ Heard and McDonald Islands - 2020 Conservation Outlook Assessment Heard and McDonald Islands 2020 Conservation Outlook Assessment SITE INFORMATION Country: Australia Inscribed in: 1997 Criteria: (viii) (ix) Heard Island and McDonald Islands are located in the Southern Ocean, approximately 1,700 km from the Antarctic continent and 4,100 km south-west of Perth. As the only volcanically active subantarctic islands they ‘open a window into the earth’, thus providing the opportunity to observe ongoing geomorphic processes and glacial dynamics. The distinctive conservation value of Heard and McDonald – one of the world’s rare pristine island ecosystems – lies in the complete absence of alien plants and animals, as well as human impact. © UNESCO SUMMARY 2020 Conservation Outlook Finalised on 02 Dec 2020 GOOD The values for which the site was inscribed remain relatively well preserved, largely as a result of its isolation and highly challenging logistic needs to access the islands. The current distribution and abundance of invasive grass Poa annua on the rapidly increasing ice-free areas is of significant concern. The site’s extreme geographical remoteness, however, also limits the ability to undertake regular on-site monitoring management operations and research activities necessary for informed contemporary management and conservation of the values. The current management plan is effectively structured to conserve the sites values, however to address the threats to the site more effectively, contemporary information on the main threats of climate change and non-native species invasion is urgently required. The findings of the most recent marine research voyage undertaken in 2016 provided some valuable new information on the marine environment, but information on the state of terrestrial ecosystems that contribute significantly to the values of the site are now seriously dated, with the last terrestrial research on the island undertaken in 2003/04. Overall, the site’s isolation reduces opportunities for human impacts to the site’s values and it is considered unlikely that threats to the values will increase in the near future. However, rapid deglaciation on Heard Island is likely to facilitate the expansion of the invasive grass Poa annua – with unknown consequences for the terrestrial ecosystems there. IUCN World Heritage Outlook: https://worldheritageoutlook.iucn.org/ Heard and McDonald Islands - 2020 Conservation Outlook Assessment IUCN World Heritage Outlook: https://worldheritageoutlook.iucn.org/ Heard and McDonald Islands - 2020 Conservation Outlook Assessment FULL ASSESSMENT Description of values Values World Heritage values ▶ Outstanding examples of significant on-going geological Criterion:(viii) processes occurring in an essentially undisturbed environment The Territory of Heard Island and McDonald Islands contains outstanding examples of active geological processes continuing in a largely undisturbed environment, free of local anthropogenic impacts. The physical processes provide an understanding of hotspot magmatism in an intraplate setting and of atmospheric and oceanic warming. They also offer an active example of active hotspot volcanism, providing direct geological evidence of the current activity of the longest-lived mantle hotspot known in the world. This includes information about plume interaction with lithospheric plates, in addition to insights into mantle hotspot composition due to the widest range of isotopic compositions of strontium, neodymium, lead and helium known from any oceanic island volcano system. Big Ben on Heard Island is the only known continuously active volcano on a sub-Antarctic island (World Heritage Committee, 2012a). Volcanic activity recently recommenced on McDonald Island increasing the island’s size significantly since the site’s inscription on the World Heritage List. ▶ Evolution and development of island ecosystems Criterion:(ix) The site demonstrates significant on-going ecological, biological, and evolutionary processes. As the only sub-Antarctic islands largely free of non-native species and with negligible modification by humans, the site is a classic example of a sub-Antarctic island group with large populations of marine birds and mammals numbering in the millions, but low species diversity. These intact ecosystems provide opportunities for ecological research investigating population dynamics and interactions of plant and animal species, as well as monitoring the health and stability of the larger Southern Ocean ecosystems. Areas of newly deglaciated land (Donoghue, 2016) as well as areas isolated from each other by glaciers provide opportunities for the study of the dispersal and establishment of plants and animals (World Heritage Committee, 2012a). Heard Island possesses the largest cushion plants and the most extensive continuous cushion carpets in the world. Other important biodiversity values ▶ Migratory species, seabirds and marine mammals The site provides important habitat for a number of resident breeding and transitory populations of seabirds, seals, and the distribution–restricted black-faced sheathbill. ▶ Wetlands Significant wetland features and processes are present in some areas, and provide habitat for a number of wetland species. These are the moist, low-elevation terrestrial, freshwater areas and shallow near- shore marine environments. Glacial retreat has increased the number and size of waterways and thus wetland features (Donoghue, 2016; Klekociuk and Wienecke, 2017). IUCN World Heritage Outlook: https://worldheritageoutlook.iucn.org/ Heard and McDonald Islands - 2020 Conservation Outlook Assessment Assessment information Threats Current Threats Low Threat The isolation of the site has contributed significantly to the maintenance of its high conservation value. The biggest and current threat to the island is sustained global climate change. The ongoing and accelerating retreat of glaciers has cut off the permanent supply of freshwater to the ice-cored moraine that annually melts to support the pool complex vegetation (wetlands) at Spit Bay. The alien grass species Poa annua may be displacing native vegetation on Heard Island, especially colonising newly deglaciated landscapes, which are increasing in frequency and area under climate change. Potential biosecurity breaches (coupled with climate change) are significant threats to the natural values, biodiversity and ecosystems on the islands. To date no rats and mice have successful colonised the island. Authorised visits apply strict biosecurity practices but rely on self-regulation for enforcement and compliance. However, there have been no commercial tourist visits in the last five years. The threat from unauthorised visits is not accurately measured but multiple unauthorised visits are known to have occurred. Such visits represent an uncontrolled risk as introductions of rodents, plants, invertebrates and vertebrates could occur from these unauthorised human visits where biosecurity protocols have not been able to be imposed. Research has shown that human visitation to sub-Antarctic islands increases the likelihood of invasion. Plastic debris occurs and accumulates on the shores of Heard Island. Many species of surface- seizing seabird such as petrels and prions are susceptible to plastic ingestion at sea. ▶ Tourism/ visitors/ recreation, Other Activities Low Threat (Wildlife disturbance associated with helicopter and IRB use Inside site, localised(<5%) during visits) There are low levels of disturbance to non-breeding seabirds and marine mammals; potential higher disturbance to breeding seabird populations is associated with tourism, research, fisheries/customs enforcement activities as these activities overlap with seabird and marine mammal breeding seasons. There have been no recent commercial tourism visits (2015 - 2020) but an unknown number and frequency of visits associated with fisheries inspections and Customs monitoring in EEZ, some of which are known to land on Heard Island (IUCN Consultation, 2020b). ▶ Tourism/ visitors/ recreation High Threat (Introduction of non-native species) Inside site, extent of threat not known Visitation brings the potential for introduction of alien species; the worst-case scenario of which would be the introduction of rodents or plants which have a high potential of being invasive, there is also the potential for invertebrate introduction (Houghton et al., 2019). Biosecurity guidelines are in place for authorised visits to mitigate this threat (Australian Government, 2014) but are challenging to enforce. Private vessels are known to visit Heard Island (and likely to visit McDonald Islands) with no biosecurity assessment, implementation or enforcement. Sailing vessels depart from South Africa and the South African and/or French sub-antarctic islands en route to Heard Island and are considered a high biosecurity risk (IUCN Consultation, 2020b). ▶ Solid Waste Low Threat (Ingestion of plastic particulates by seabirds, episodic oiling of Inside site, scattered(5-15%) seabirds) Presence of plastics and microplastics in the Southern Ocean has been confirmed (Isobe et al., 2017) and plastics regularly wash up on Heard Island beaches (Schmieder, 2016). There are documented reports of wildlife entanglement, plastic ingestion by, and of oiling of seabirds at Heard Island (Auman et al., 2004). Smaller petrels feed by capturing prey at the surface and can mistake plastic particles as prey. Plastic debris is