Times of the Islands Spring 2022

SIMON BUSUTTIL
Shown here are three of TCI’s breeding seabirds at the National Trust’s Wheeland Pond on Providenciales, one of the best sites in TCI to watch
and photograph birds. From left to right are: a Royal Tern, Laughing Gull, and Cabot’s (formerly Sandwich) Tern.
don’t hatch because they are taken or are abandoned,
inevitably leads to declines.
With European colonisation came the additional pressure
of the introduction of non-native predatory species
such as cats and rats to most islands, and on some,
mongooses were introduced to control the previously
introduced rats. The impact of introduced predators on
species which previously had no experience with them is
described in a seminal paper from our own Pine Cay. John
Iverson studied Turks & Caicos Rock Iguanas Cyclura carinata
there before, during, and after the construction of
the Meridian Hotel in 1973/74. His 1978 paper describes
the numbers of iguanas falling from over 15,000 to fewer
than 30 as a result of predation by cats and dogs introduced
to the island by construction workers. Elsewhere,
other non-predatory species such as goats significantly
change the vegetation on islands which had never had a
significant population of grazing animals and the plant
communities of which changed through grazing.
With over 250, mainly uninhabited, cays it is no surprise
that 15 of the 23 Caribbean species of seabirds
breed in TCI. Counts of breeding seabirds in TCI from
some 15 years ago suggest that there are about 60,000
pairs of seabirds breeding here, mainly on those cays on
the edge of the banks that are adjacent to oceanic waters,
but there are small numbers across the country even still
on Providenciales itself. Since the counts were made
much has happened which may have impacted on these
important populations—from the Deepwater Horizon oil
spill to significantly increased numbers of tourists and
residents which may cause added disturbance.
It is important that we get a clearer understanding
of how our breeding seabirds are doing and areas they
currently use. This data can inform planning and development
decisions so that this asset is not damaged further.
There are plans for a full survey of all TCI’s breeding
seabirds over the next few years using both human surveyors
and a range of recently developed technology such
as drones, remote cameras, and acoustic recording. The
latter will be particularly important to help understand
how many Audubon’s Shearwaters Puffinus Iherminien
there still are in the Islands. These birds breed in burrows
so are particularly vulnerable to predation by rats.
They are also nocturnal so are rarely encountered. They
are still here though. Small flocks can be seen beyond the
reef in Grace Bay during the spring and summer.
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