ATOLL RESEARCH BULLETIN NO. 174 THE NATURAL HISTORY OF PEARL AND HERMES REEF, NORTHWESTERN HAWAIIAN ISLANDS by A. Binion Amerson, Jr., Roger C. Clapp, and William 0. Wirtz, Ii Issued by THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION with the assistance of The Bureau of Sport Fisheries and Wildlife U.S. Department of the Interior Washington, D.C., U.S.A. ACKNOWLEDGMENT The Atoll Research Bulletin is issued by the Smithsonian Institution as a part of its Tropical Biology Program. It is co- sponsored by the Museum of Natural History, the Office of Environ- mental Sciences, and the Smithsonian Press. The Press supports and handles production and distribution. The editing is done by the Tropical Biology staff, Botany Department, Museum of Natural History. The Bulletin was founded and the first 117 numbers issued by the Pacific Science Board, National Academy of Sciences, with financial support from the Office of Naval Research. Its pages were largely devoted to reports resulting from the Pacific Science Board's Coral Atoll Program. The sole responsibility for all statements made by authors of papers in the Atoll Research Bulletin rests with them, and statements made in the Bulletin do not necessarily represent the views of the Smithsonian nor those of the editors of the Bulletin. Editors F. R. Fosberg M.-H. Sachet Smithsonian Institution Washington, D. C. 20560 D. R. Stoddart Department of Geography University of Cambridge Downing Place Cambridge, England TABLE OF CONTENTS ! . LIST OF FIGmS ......................................................ill... LIST OF TABLES ......................................................VLLL ... LIST OF APPENDIX TABLES .............................................x111 INTRODUCTION ...........................................................1 DESCRIPTION ............................................................3 GEOLOGY ...............................................................17 CLIMATE ...............................................................22 HISTORY ..............................................................-26 SCIENTIFIC VISITS .....................................................34 VEGETATION ............................................................38 Vascular Plants ..................................................38 Grass Island ...................................................39 Little North Island ............................................42 North Island ..................................................-42 Seal Island ....................................................46 Southeast Island ...............................................46 Other Islands .................................................-58 REFTILES ..............................................................58 Chelonia agassizi ...............................................-61 BIRDS .................................................................67 Introduction .....................................................68 Resident Seabirds ..............................................69 Migrant Shorebirds .............................................70 Vagrant, Accidental. and Introduced Birds ......................70 Annual Cycles ....................................................70 Seabird Breeding Cycles 71 i ........................................ Winter and Spring Breeders ...................................71 Spring and Summer Breeders ...................................71 Summer and Fall Breeders .....................................71 Fall and Winter Breeders... ..................................71 Land Bird Breeding Cycles ......................................71 Population Cycles ................................................73 Resident Species ...............................................73 Non-resident Species ...........................................73 Introduced Birds .............................................. -74 Ecological Distribution Within the Atoll .........................74 Resident Seabirds ..............................................75 Migrant Shorebirds ......................................i ..... .75 Vagrant. Accidental. and Introduced Birds ......................75 Island Accounts ..................................................75 Bird Island ....................................................77 Grass Island ...................................................77 Kittery Island .................................................82 I Little North Island ...........................................-82 North Island ....................................................86 1 Planetree Island ............................... ...............86 Sand Island ...................................................-89 Seal Island ...................................................-89 ! Southeast Island ...............................................89 ii Banding and Movement ..............................................97 i Banding ........................................................97 Movement ......................................................10 7 Species ~ccounts................................................ 10 7 Diomedea nigripes + .............................................ill Diomedea immutabilis ..........................................118 Pterodroma hypoleuca ..........................................18 Bulweria bulwerii .............................................U3 Puff inus pacif icus ............................................134 ~ Puffinus nativitatus .......................................... 139- I Oceanodroma tristrami .........................................143 ! Phaethon rubricauda ...........................................147 -Sula dactylatra ...............................................152 Sula sula ....................................................-162 iI -Sula leucoaaster ..............................................169 Fremta minor .................................................174 Anas acuta ....................................................182 Anas laysanensis ...............................................182 Porzanula ualmeri ............................................-184 Pluvialis dominica ............................................185 Numenius tahitiensis ..........................................190 Heteroscelus incanum ..........................................193 I Arenaria interpres ............................................196 Capella species ..............................................-201 Calidris canutus 202 I .............................................. I Crocethia alba ................................................202 Erolia acuminata ..............................................205 Erolia alpina sakbalina .......................................205 Philomachus pugnax ............................................206 Phalaropus fulicarius .........................................206 -Larus delawarensis ............................................207 -Lams argentatus ........................................207 -Larus glaucescens ............................................-208 Rissa tridactyla .............................................-208 Sterna lunata .................................................209 Sterna fuscata ................................................215 Anous stolidus ................................................220 tenuirostris ............................................28 Gygis alba ....................................................234 Fratercula corniculata ........................................237 Psittirostra cantans cantans ..................................238 MAMMALS ..............................................................240 ! Stenella roseiventris ...........................................240 Tursiops truncatus ..............................................240 Monachus schauinslandi ..........................................241 Oryctolagus cuniculus ...........................................252 S.@@@.RY ..............................................................253 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ......................................................254 LITEFATUIIE CITED .....................................................256 APPENDIX TABLES ......................................................268 iii LIST OF FIGURES 1. The Hawaiian Islands. 2. Map of Pearl and Hermes Reef. Redrawn from U.S. Coast and Geodetic Survey chart 4175. 3. Early map of Pearl and Hermes Reef. Unpublished 1859 map by N.C. Brooks showing track of Gambia and wrecks of Pearl and Hermes (U.S. Nat. Archives, Cartogr. Div., R.G. 37). 4. Map of Pearl and Hermes Reef, 1867. Redrawn from U.S. Naval Hydrographic Office chart 4, 1868. 5. Map of Pearl and Hermes Reef, 1924. Redrawn from U.S. Naval Hydrographic Off ice chart 4, reissued 1924. 6. Aerial view of Grass Island, 5 June 1962. Official U.S. Navy photograph. 7. Map of Grass Island, May 1923. Redrawn from BOP. Bishop Museum map by Cmdr. S.W. King. 8. Map of Kittery Island, March 1965. Redrawn from POBSP map by W.O. Wirtz, 11. 9. Aerial view of Little North Island, 5 June 1962. Official U.S. Navy photograph. 10. Aerial view of North Island, 5 June 1962. Official U.S. Navy photograph. 11. Map of North Island, May 1923. Redrawn from B.P. Bishop Museum map by Cmdr. S .W. King. 12. Aerial view of Seal Island, 5 June 1962. Official U.S. Navy photograph. U. Map of Seal Island, May 1923. Redrawn from B.P. Bishop Museum map by Cmdr. S.W. King. 1. Aerial view of Southeast Island, 5 June 1962; a small-boat channel through the reef occurs just out of view on the right. Official