The original concept of developing a regional seabird colony database for the Pacific was proposed by Jez Bird, while at BirdLife International in 2011/12. Jez and colleague, Thomas Churchyard, reviewed the literature and collated all historic evidence of nesting seabirds throughout the Pacific region onto a spreadsheet. They analysed the data and extracted sites that exceeded the globally important criteria for aggregated seabirds, some 104 terrestrial sites, and incorporated this into the Global Important Bird Areas (now Key Biodiversity Areas) database. The conservation messages were summarised in BirdLife (2012). This work was funded by the Aage V. Jensen Charity Foundation, and the Global Green grants Fund.
A summarised version of this data, focussed on globally threatened seabird species, was made available through the Threatened Island Biodiversity Database.
In 2019 SPREP contracted BirdLife International (Chris Gaskin, Stephanie Borrelle and Mark O’Brien) to prepare a Pacific Seabirds Action Plan, to be included in the Pacific Islands Regional Marine Species Programme 2022-2026 (SPREP 2022). Within the Seabird Action Plan Theme 1, Objective 1.1, Activity 1.1.1 was to ‘… update and expand the Regional Seabird Colony database and ensure access through the Pacific Environment Portal….’. Mark O’Brien updated the information while ….. converted the spreadsheet into an outward-facing, publicly accessible, database.
We see this database as a starting point for Pacific Island Countries and Territories and Partners to build knowledge of seabirds of the Pacific, their distribution and especially over time their population trends. We encourage countries, partners, researchers and seabird enthusiasts to contribute existing data as well as plan resurveys of key colonies where information is over 10 years old. Data will also be important for reporting on progress in multilateral environmental agreements (MEAs) for example on National Biodiversity Strategies and Action Plans (NBSAPs).
The original spreadsheet that served as the starting point for this portal can still be accessed here: https://pacific-data.sprep.org/dataset/pacific-seabird-colony-database
Key Biodiversity Areas Map Layer
The Key Biodiversity Area map layer is provided by:
BirdLife International (2024) World Database of Key Biodiversity Areas. Developed by the KBA Partnership: BirdLife International, International Union for the Conservation of Nature, American Bird Conservancy, Amphibian Survival Alliance, Conservation International, Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund, Global Environment Facility, Re:wild, NatureServe, Rainforest Trust, Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, Wildlife Conservation Society and World Wildlife Fund. September 2024 version.