128Wildlife Conservation Plan for Seabirds

128 Wildlife Conservation Plan for Seabirds

Black Noddy (Anous minutus)

TABLE Species information for the Black Noddy (Anous minutus)

The Black Noddy (Anous minutus) is a medium sized slender sooty-black noddy with a long straight slender bill, long narrow wings and shallow forked tail. The Black Noddy has a worldwide distribution in tropical and subtropical seas, with colonies widespread in the western and central Pacific Ocean and more scattered across the Caribbean, central Atlantic and in the northeast Indian Ocean (del Hoyo et al. 1996). This species inhabits tropical and subtropical islands. Its breeding season varies depending upon locality, with variable colony sizes and nest sites (del Hoyo et al. 1996). It feeds on small fish and squid, with prey species and proportion of each depending on locality. It often feeds by hover-dipping and contact-dipping. Kleptoparasitism has been observed, and it will associate with other seabirds over schools of predatory fish.

BirdLife International (2019) estimates the population at between 1,146,000–2,061,000 individuals. The global population is suspected to be stable in the absence of evidence for any decreases or substantial threats. In Australia the bulk of the population occurs in Queensland, with the Capricorina–Bunker Group containing approximately 97% of the Black Noddies on the Great Barrier Reef (Hulsman et al 1997). Dyer et al. (2005) estimated 302,000 active nests between 1997–2000 for nine of the 16 islands in the group. As of 2012, there were 20-year and 10-year data sets available for North East Cay (Herald Cays) and South West Cay (Herald Cays) in the Coral Sea Marine Park, respectively (Baker and Holsworth 2013). Over the 20-year period (1992-2012), the Black Noddy population declined at an annual rate of 3.8 per cent (Baker and Holsworth 2013).

Increased sea surface temperature has been demonstrated to reduce the provisioning rate at studied colonies in the Great Barrier Reef, and above a particular threshold of temperature reproductive success is nil (Chambers et al. 2011). At present this impact appears restricted to a minority of the breeding population, and colonies have become established at new locations which may be related to adaption to climate impacts. It is possible that, in the future, the effects of climate change could have an adverse impact on food sources and breeding habitat. Invasive species have contributed to the decline of the species throughout its range (Priddel et al. 2010; BirdLife International 2019)

 Implement best practice quarantine measures at breeding colonies to reduce the risk of any invasive species (re)establishing on islands

Wildlife Conservation Plan for Seabirds 129

White Tern (Gygis alba)

TABLE Species information for the White Tern (Gygis alba)