Federal Register/Vol. 84, No. 78/Tuesday, April 23, 2019/Rules
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Management Plan for Antarctic Specially Protected Area No 151
Measure 5 (2019) Management Plan for Antarctic Specially Protected Area No 151 Lions Rump, King George Island, South Shetland Islands Introduction Lions Rump (62º08’S; 58º07’W) is located on the southwestern coast of King George Island, South Shetland Islands, covering approximately 1.32 km2 in area. The Area takes its name from the distinctive rocky hill lying between the southern extremity of King George Bay and Lions Cove. The Area was originally designated as Site of Special Scientific Interest No 34 through Recommendation XVI-2 (1991, SSSI No 34) after a proposal by Poland on the grounds that it contains diverse biota and geological features and is a representative example of the terrestrial, limnological, and littoral habitats of the maritime Antarctic. The Area was designated primarily to protect its ecological values. It is also valuable as a reference site with diverse avian and mammalian Antarctic fauna, against which disturbance at sites situated near locations of human activity can be measured. A revised Management Plan was adopted in Measure 1 (2000). The site was re-designated ASPA No 151 in Decision 1 (2002). A second revised Management Plan was adopted in Measure 11 (2013). Based on the Environmental Domains Analysis for Antarctica (Resolution 3 (2008)) ASPA No 151 lies within Environment A (Antarctic Peninsula northern geologic), which is a small, terrestrial environment around the northern Antarctic Peninsula consisting entirely of ice-free land cover and sedimentary geology (Morgan et al. 2007). Other protected areas containing Domain A include ASPA No 111, ASPA No 128 and ASMA No 1 (Morgan et al. -
Amanda Bay, Ingrid Christensen Coast, Princess Elizabeth Land, East Antarctica
MEASURE 3 - ANNEX Management Plan for Antarctic Specially Protected Area No 169 AMANDA BAY, INGRID CHRISTENSEN COAST, PRINCESS ELIZABETH LAND, EAST ANTARCTICA Introduction Amanda Bay is located on the Ingrid Christensen Coast of Princess Elizabeth Land, East Antarctica at 69°15' S, 76°49’59.9" E. (Map A). The Antarctic Specially Protected Area (ASPA) is designated to protect the breeding colony of several thousand pairs of emperor penguins annually resident in the south-west corner of Amanda Bay, while providing for continued collection of valuable long- term research and monitoring data and comparative studies with colonies elsewhere in East Antarctica. Only two other emperor penguin colonies along the extensive East Antarctic coastline are protected within ASPAs (ASPA 120, Point Géologie Archipelago and ASPA 167 Haswell Island). Amanda Bay is more easily accessed, from vessels or by vehicle from research stations in the Larsemann Hills and Vestfold Hills, than many other emperor penguin colonies in East Antarctica. This accessibility is advantageous for research purposes, but also creates the potential for human disturbance of the birds. The Antarctic coastline in the vicinity of Amanda Bay was first sighted and named the Ingrid Christensen Coast by Captain Mikkelsen in command of the Norwegian ship Thorshavn on 20 February 1935. Oblique aerial photographs of the coastline were taken by the Lars Christensen expedition in 1937 and by the US Operation Highjump in 1947 for reconnaissance purposes. In the 1954/55 summer, the Australian National Antarctic Research Expedition (ANARE) on the Kista Dan explored the waters of Prydz Bay, and the first recorded landing in the area was made by a sledging party led by Dr. -
Final Report of the Thirty-Second Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meeting
Final Report of the Thirty-second Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meeting ANTARCTIC TREATY CONSULTATIVE MEETING Final Report of the Thirty-second Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meeting Baltimore, United States 6–17 April 2009 Secretariat of the Antarctic Treaty Buenos Aires 2009 Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meeting (32nd : 2009 : Baltimore) Final Report of the Thirtieth Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meeting. Baltimore, United States, 6–17 April 2009. Buenos Aires : Secretariat of the Antarctic Treaty, 2009. 292 p. ISBN 978-987-1515-08-0 1. International law – Environmental issues. 2. Antarctic Treaty system. 3. Environmental law – Antarctica. 4. Environmental protection – Antarctica. DDC 341.762 5 ISBN 978-987-1515-08-0 Contents VOLUME 1 (in hardcopy and CD) Acronyms and Abbreviations 11 PART I. FINAL REPORT 13 1. Final Report 15 2. CEP XII Report 85 3. Appendices 159 Declaration on the 50th Anniversary of the Antarctic Treaty 161 Declaration on the International Polar Year and Polar Science 163 Preliminary Agenda for ATCM XXXIII 165 PART II. MEASURES, DECISIONS AND RESOLUTIONS 167 1. Measures 169 Measure 1 (2009): ASMA No 3 – Cape Denison, Commonwealth Bay, George V Land, East Antarctica 171 Measure 2 (2009): ASMA No 7 – South-west Anvers Island and Palmer Basin 173 Measure 3 (2009): ASPA No 104 – Sabrina Island, Balleny Islands 175 Measure 4 (2009): ASPA No 113 – Litchfi eld Island, Arthur Harbour, Anvers Island, Palmer Archipelago 177 Measure 5 (2009): ASPA No 121 – Cape Royds, Ross Island 179 Measure 6 (2009): ASPA No 125 – Fildes Peninsula, -
Species Status Assessment Emperor Penguin (Aptenodytes Fosteri)
SPECIES STATUS ASSESSMENT EMPEROR PENGUIN (APTENODYTES FOSTERI) Emperor penguin chicks being socialized by male parents at Auster Rookery, 2008. Photo Credit: Gary Miller, Australian Antarctic Program. Version 1.0 December 2020 U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Ecological Services Program Branch of Delisting and Foreign Species Falls Church, Virginia Acknowledgements: EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Penguins are flightless birds that are highly adapted for the marine environment. The emperor penguin (Aptenodytes forsteri) is the tallest and heaviest of all living penguin species. Emperors are near the top of the Southern Ocean’s food chain and primarily consume Antarctic silverfish, Antarctic krill, and squid. They are excellent swimmers and can dive to great depths. The average life span of emperor penguin in the wild is 15 to 20 years. Emperor penguins currently breed at 61 colonies located around Antarctica, with the largest colonies in the Ross Sea and Weddell Sea. The total population size is estimated at approximately 270,000–280,000 breeding pairs or 625,000–650,000 total birds. Emperor penguin depends upon stable fast ice throughout their 8–9 month breeding season to complete the rearing of its single chick. They are the only warm-blooded Antarctic species that breeds during the austral winter and therefore uniquely adapted to its environment. Breeding colonies mainly occur on fast ice, close to the coast or closely offshore, and amongst closely packed grounded icebergs that prevent ice breaking out during the breeding season and provide shelter from the wind. Sea ice extent in the Southern Ocean has undergone considerable inter-annual variability over the last 40 years, although with much greater inter-annual variability in the five sectors than for the Southern Ocean as a whole. -
Emperor Island, Dion Islands, Marguerite Bay, Antarctic Peninsula
From Measure 1 (2002) Management Plan for Antarctic Specially Protected Area No. 107 EMPEROR ISLAND, DION ISLANDS, MARGUERITE BAY, ANTARCTIC PENINSULA 1. Description of values to be protected The Dion Islands (Latitude 67°52’ S, Longitude 68°42’ W), on the western side of the central Antarctic Peninsula in north-western Marguerite Bay, were originally designated as Specially Protected Area (SPA) No. 8 through Recommendation IV-8 in 1966 after a proposal by the United Kingdom. All of the islands in the Dion Islands archipelago were included. Values protected under the original designation were described as the presence of the only colony of emperor penguins (Aptenodytes forsteri) known to exist on the west side of the Antarctic Peninsula and that the isolation of this colony from others of the same species makes it of outstanding scientific interest. A management plan for the Area was adopted through Recommendation XVI-6 (1990), which reaffirmed the values of the Area. The boundaries were extended to include the intervening sea between the islands to ensure protection of the emperors at sea or on sea-ice in the immediate vicinity. Attention was drawn to the additional important value of the colony being one of only two known in which breeding occurs on land. It was also noted as the most northerly and probably the smallest of Emperor colonies, with annual numbers fluctuating around 150 pairs. The values of the emperor penguin colony are reaffirmed in this revised management plan. The boundaries of the Area are now defined more precisely. -
Management Plan for Antarctic Specially Protected Area No
Management Plan for Antarctic Specially Protected Area No. 108 GREEN ISLAND, BERTHELOT ISLANDS, ANTARCTIC PENINSULA 1. Description of values to be protected Green Island (Latitude 65°19' S, Longitude 64°09' W, approximately 0.2 km2), Berthelot Islands, Grandidier Channel, Antarctic Peninsula, was originally designated as a Specially Protected Area through Recommendation IV-9 (1966, SPA No. 9) after a proposal by the United Kingdom. It was designated on the grounds that the vegetation “is exceptionally rich, [and] is probably the most luxuriant anywhere on the west side of the Antarctic Peninsula”. The Recommendation noted: “in some places the humus is 2 metres thick and that this area, being of outstanding scientific interest, should be protected because it is probably one of the most diverse Antarctic ecosystems”. A Management Plan for the site was prepared by the United Kingdom and adopted through Recommendation XVI-6 (1991). The original reasons for designation were extended and elaborated, although following comparisons to other sites in the vicinity, Green Island was no longer considered to be particularly diverse. The vegetation on the island was described as extensive on the north-facing slopes, with well-developed continuous banks of moss turf formed by Chorisodontium aciphyllum and Polytrichum strictum that, over much of their extent, overlie peat of more than one metre in depth. Antarctic hair grass (Deschampsia antarctica), one of only two native vascular plants that grow south of 56°S, was noted as frequent in small patches near a blue-eyed cormorant (Phalacrocorax atriceps) colony. The colony of blue- eyed cormorants, located on the steep, rocky northwestern corner of the island, was noted as being possibly one of the largest along the Antarctic Peninsula. -
Antarctic Primer
Antarctic Primer By Nigel Sitwell, Tom Ritchie & Gary Miller By Nigel Sitwell, Tom Ritchie & Gary Miller Designed by: Olivia Young, Aurora Expeditions October 2018 Cover image © I.Tortosa Morgan Suite 12, Level 2 35 Buckingham Street Surry Hills, Sydney NSW 2010, Australia To anyone who goes to the Antarctic, there is a tremendous appeal, an unparalleled combination of grandeur, beauty, vastness, loneliness, and malevolence —all of which sound terribly melodramatic — but which truly convey the actual feeling of Antarctica. Where else in the world are all of these descriptions really true? —Captain T.L.M. Sunter, ‘The Antarctic Century Newsletter ANTARCTIC PRIMER 2018 | 3 CONTENTS I. CONSERVING ANTARCTICA Guidance for Visitors to the Antarctic Antarctica’s Historic Heritage South Georgia Biosecurity II. THE PHYSICAL ENVIRONMENT Antarctica The Southern Ocean The Continent Climate Atmospheric Phenomena The Ozone Hole Climate Change Sea Ice The Antarctic Ice Cap Icebergs A Short Glossary of Ice Terms III. THE BIOLOGICAL ENVIRONMENT Life in Antarctica Adapting to the Cold The Kingdom of Krill IV. THE WILDLIFE Antarctic Squids Antarctic Fishes Antarctic Birds Antarctic Seals Antarctic Whales 4 AURORA EXPEDITIONS | Pioneering expedition travel to the heart of nature. CONTENTS V. EXPLORERS AND SCIENTISTS The Exploration of Antarctica The Antarctic Treaty VI. PLACES YOU MAY VISIT South Shetland Islands Antarctic Peninsula Weddell Sea South Orkney Islands South Georgia The Falkland Islands South Sandwich Islands The Historic Ross Sea Sector Commonwealth Bay VII. FURTHER READING VIII. WILDLIFE CHECKLISTS ANTARCTIC PRIMER 2018 | 5 Adélie penguins in the Antarctic Peninsula I. CONSERVING ANTARCTICA Antarctica is the largest wilderness area on earth, a place that must be preserved in its present, virtually pristine state. -
THE PUBLICATION of the NEW ZEALAND ANTARCTIC SOCIETY Vol 34, No
THE PUBLICATION OF THE NEW ZEALAND ANTARCTIC SOCIETY Vol 34, No. 3, 2016 34, No. Vol 03 9 770003 532006 Vol 34, No. 3, 2016 Issue 237 Contents www.antarctic.org.nz is published quarterly by the New Zealand Antarctic Society Inc. ISSN 0003-5327 30 The New Zealand Antarctic Society is a Registered Charity CC27118 EDITOR: Lester Chaplow ASSISTANT EDITOR: Janet Bray New Zealand Antarctic Society PO Box 404, Christchurch 8140, New Zealand Email: [email protected] INDEXER: Mike Wing The deadlines for submissions to future issues are 1 November, 1 February, 1 May and 1 August. News 25 Shackleton’s Bad Lads 26 PATRON OF THE NEW ZEALAND ANTARCTIC SOCIETY: From Gateway City to Volunteer Duty at Scott Base 30 Professor Peter Barrett, 2008 NEW ZEALAND ANTARCTIC SOCIETY How You Can Help Us Save Sir Ed’s Antarctic Legacy 33 LIFE MEMBERS The Society recognises with life membership, First at Arrival Heights 34 those people who excel in furthering the aims and objectives of the Society or who have given outstanding service in Antarctica. They are Conservation Trophy 2016 36 elected by vote at the Annual General Meeting. The number of life members can be no more Auckland Branch Midwinter Celebration 37 than 15 at any one time. Current Life Members by the year elected: Wellington Branch – 2016 Midwinter Event 37 1. Jim Lowery (Wellington), 1982 2. Robin Ormerod (Wellington), 1996 3. Baden Norris (Canterbury), 2003 Travelling with the Huskies Through 4. Bill Cranfield (Canterbury), 2003 the Transantarctic Mountains 38 5. Randal Heke (Wellington), 2003 6. Bill Hopper (Wellington), 2004 Hillary’s TAE/IGY Hut: Calling all stories 40 7. -
Avian Island, Marguerite Bay, Antarctic Peninsula
Measure 2 (2013) Annex Management Plan for Antarctic Specially Protected Area No. 117 AVIAN ISLAND, MARGUERITE BAY, ANTARCTIC PENINSULA Introduction The primary reason for the designation of Avian Island, Marguerite Bay, Antarctic Peninsula (67°46'S, 68°54'W; 0.49 km2) as an Antarctic Specially Protected Area (ASPA) is to protect environmental values and primarily the abundance and diversity of breeding seabirds on the island. Avian Island is situated in northwestern Marguerite Bay, 400 m south of Adelaide Island on the western side of the central Antarctic Peninsula. It was originally designated as Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) No. 30 under Recommendation XV-6 in 1989 after a proposal by the United Kingdom. Included was the island together with its littoral zone, but excluded was a small area near a refuge on the northwestern coast of the island. Values protected under the original designation were described as the abundance and diversity of breeding seabirds present on the island, that the southern giant petrel (Macronectes giganteus) colony is one of the most southerly known breeding population of this species, and that the blue-eyed cormorants (Phalacrocorax atriceps) are breeding close to the southern limit of their range. The Area was therefore considered of outstanding ornithological importance, meriting protection from unnecessary human disturbance. Designation as an SSSI was terminated with redesignation of Avian Island as a Specially Protected Area (SPA) through Recommendation XVI-4 (1991, SPA No. 21) after a proposal by the United Kingdom. The boundaries were similar to the original SSSI, but included the entire island and the littoral zone without the exclusion zone near the refuge on the northwestern coast. -
Management Plan for Antarctic Specially Protected Area No. 116 NEW COLLEGE VALLEY, CAUGHLEY BEACH, CAPE BIRD, ROSS ISLAND
Management Plan For Antarctic Specially Protected Area No. 116 NEW COLLEGE VALLEY, CAUGHLEY BEACH, CAPE BIRD, ROSS ISLAND 1. Description of values to be protected In 1985, two areas at Cape Bird, Ross Island were designated as SSSI No. 10, Caughley Beach (Recommendation XIII-8 (1985)) and SPA No. 20, New College Valley (Recommendation XIII-12 (1985)), following proposals by New Zealand that these areas should be protected because they contained some of the richest stands of moss and associated microflora and fauna in the Ross Sea region of Antarctica. This is the only area on Ross Island where protection is specifically given to plant assemblages and associated ecosystems. At that time, SPA No. 20 was enclosed within SSSI No. 10, in order to provide more stringent access conditions to that part of the Area. In 2000, SSSI No. 10 was incorporated with SPA No. 20 by Measure 1 (2000), with the former area covered by SPA No. 20 becoming a Restricted Zone within the revised SPA No. 20. The boundaries of the Area were revised from the boundaries in the original recommendations, in view of improved mapping and to follow more closely the ridges enclosing the catchment of New College Valley. Caughley Beach itself was adjacent to, but never a part of, the original Area, and for this reason the entire Area was renamed as New College Valley, which was within both of the original sites. The Area was redesignated by Decision 1 (2002) as Antarctic Specially Protected Area (ASPA) No. 116 and a revised Management Plan was adopted through Measure 1 (2006). -
CAPE EVANS, ROSS ISLAND (Including Historic Site and Monument Nos
Measure 8 (2010) Annex Management Plan For Antarctic Specially Protected Area No. 155 CAPE EVANS, ROSS ISLAND (including Historic Site and Monument Nos. 16 and 17, the historic Terra Nova hut of Captain Robert Falcon Scott and its precincts and the Cross on Wind Vane Hill) 1. Description of Values to be Protected The significant historic value of this Area was formally recognised when it was listed as Historic Site and Monument Nos. 16 and 17 in Recommendation 9 (1972). An area containing both sites was designated as Specially Protected Area No. 25 in Measure 2 (1997) and redesignated as Antarctic Specially Protected Area 155 in Decision 1 (2002). The Terra Nova hut (Historic Site and Monument No. 16) is the largest of the historic huts in the Ross Sea region. It was built in January 1911 by the British Antarctic Terra Nova Expedition of 1910-1913, led by Captain Robert Falcon Scott, RN. It was subsequently used as a base by the Ross Sea party of Sir Ernest Shackleton’s Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition of 1914-1917. Historic Site and Monument No. 17 consists of the Cross on Wind Vane Hill, erected in the memory of three members of Shackleton’s Ross Sea party who died in 1916. In addition to this, two anchors from the ship Aurora of the Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition, two instrument shelters (one on Wind Vane Hill and the other near the Terra Nova hut), several supply dumps and numerous artefacts are distributed around the site. Cape Evans is one of the principal sites of early human activity in Antarctica. -
The Antarctic Treaty
Miscellaneous No. 7 (2007) The Antarctic Treaty Measures adopted at the Twenty-ninth Consultative Meeting held at Edinburgh 12 – 23 June 2006 Presented to Parliament by the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs by Command of Her Majesty July 2007 Cm 7167 £17.00 Miscellaneous No. 7 (2007) The Antarctic Treaty Measures adopted at the Twenty-ninth Consultative Meeting held at Edinburgh 12 – 23 June 2006 Presented to Parliament by the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs by Command of Her Majesty July 2007 Cm 7167 £17.00 © Crown copyright 2007 The text in this document (excluding the Royal Arms and departmental logos) may be reproduced free of charge in any format or medium providing it is reproduced accurately and not used in a misleading context. The material must be acknowledged as Crown copyright and the title of the document specified. Any enquiries relating to the copyright in this document should be addressed to the Licensing Division, HMSO, St Clements House, 2-16 Colegate, Norwich NR3 1BQ. Fax 01603 723000 or e-mail: [email protected] MEASURES ADOPTED AT THE TWENTY-NINTH CONSULTATIVE MEETING HELD AT EDINBURGH 12 - 23 JUNE 2006 The Measures1 adopted at the Twenty-ninth Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meeting are reproduced below from the Final Report of the Meeting. In accordance with Article IX, paragraph 4, of the Antarctic Treaty, the Measures adopted at Consultative Meetings become effective upon approval by all Contracting Parties whose representatives were entitled to participate in the meeting at which they were adopted (i.e.