Population decreases in Little Penguins Eudyptula minor in southeastern Tasmania, Australia, over the past 45 years
2007
Stevenson, C | Woehler, E
We investigated the distribution and abundance of Little Penguins Eudyptula minor at 12 known colony locations on mainland southeasternTasmania, Australia. Surveys of scientific journals, unpublished field surveys and oral records were compiled to assess the historicaldistribution (before 1996) of this species within a 150-km radius of Hobart. Current status of each site was assessed by conducting surveysof the areas of historical distribution during the 2002/03 breeding season. Transects were used to conduct burrow counts, supplemented bycounts of penguins coming ashore at night. Of the 12 colonies examined, four have disappeared and two have decreased appreciably in sizewithin the last decade. Potential causes of these decreases include predation by introduced vertebrates, habitat modification and destructionand incidental drowning in recreational gillnets.
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