Vostok Island (27464)
Kiribati, Oceania
Site overview
KBA status: confirmed
Year of last assessment: 2008
National site name: Vostok Island
Central coordinates: Latitude: -10.0960, Longitude: -152.3880
System: marine, terrestrial
Elevation (m): 0 to 5
Area of KBA (km2): 5.74707
Protected area coverage (%): 0.00
KBA classification: Regional
Legacy site: Yes
Site details
Site description: Vostok is a small, low-lying, coral island of the southern Line Islands.
Rationale for qualifying as KBA: This site qualifies as a Key Biodiversity Area of international significance that was identified using previously established criteria and thresholds for the identification of Important Bird and Biodiversity Areas (IBAs) and for which available data indicate that it does not meet global KBA criteria and thresholds set out in the Global Standard.
Additional biodiversity: An important seabird colony. Non-bird biodiversity: Coconut crabs have been positively identified on the island, although densities are unknown.
Supersedes another site: 31026
Delineation rationale: This boundary includes the original colony area with an additional 1km marine foraging buffer. These buffers were redefined and are now more appropriate for the trigger species (Great Frigatebird).
Habitats
Summary of habitats in KBA: Little evidence of recent occupation. Phosphate mining was proposed, although there is no evidence that any extraction actually occurred. A small triangular island with no lagoon, the central portion of the island is occupied by a stand of Pisonia forest which grows to a height of c25m.
Threats
Summary of threats to biodiversity at KBA: There is a substantial population of pacific rats on the island, particularly underneath the Pisonia woodland. Little evidence that the rats impact significantly on the seabird populations however.