Taranga Hen Island (31227)
New Zealand, Australasia
Site overview
KBA status: confirmed
Global KBA criteria: A1b, B2, D1a
Year of last assessment: 2014
National site name: Taranga Hen Island
Central coordinates: Latitude: -35.9643, Longitude: 174.7075
System: marine, terrestrial
Elevation (m): 0 to 417
Area of KBA (km2): 4.92763
Protected area coverage (%): 99.06
KBA classification: Global
Legacy site: Yes
Site details
Rationale for qualifying as KBA: This site qualifies as a Key Biodiversity Area of international significance that meets the thresholds for at least one criterion described in the Global Standard for the Identification of KBAs.
Additional biodiversity: IBA Trigger species: Pycroft's Petrel, Grey-faced Petrel, Kaka, Red-fronted Parakeet, Saddleback (North Island), Little Spotted Kiwi Ornithological information: Besides the trigger species the following are confirmed breeding or resident on the islands: Little Penguin, Cook’s Petrel*, Sooty Shearwater, Fluttering Shearwater, Northern Little Shearwater, Common Diving Pet-rel, Pied Shag, Southern Black-backed Gull, NZ Pigeon, Yellow-crowned Parakeet, Morepork, NZ Kingfisher, Welcome Swal-low, NZ Pipit, North Island Fantail, Grey Warbler, North Island Tomtit, Silvereye, Bellbird, Tui, Blackbird, Song Thrush, Chaffinch, Starling, Hedge Sparrow. Other species recorded: Little Shag, Reef Heron, Grey Duck, Mallard, Red-billed Gull, White-fronted Tern, Caspian Tern, Shining Cuckoo, Common Myna. *Cook's Petrels were recorded calling on many nights around the summit area (2010), both after dusk and during pre-dawn period. However, breeding has not been confirmed for this species.
Habitats
| IUCN Habitat | Coverage % | Habitat detail |
|---|---|---|
| Marine Coastal/Supratidal | 25 | |
| Shrubland | 25 | |
| Forest | 25 | |
| Marine Intertidal | 25 |
Threats
Summary of threats to biodiversity at KBA: Human disturbance – No Predation by alien species – No Habitat loss or degradation – No Contamination – No Natural disaster – No Other - No
Additional information
References: Atkinson, I.A.E. 1972. Vegetation and Flora of Sail Rock, Hen and Chickens islands. New Zealand Journal of Botany 10: 545-558. Buxton, R.T. 2012. Burrow-nesting petrel surveys in the Hen & Chickens Islands. A report submitted to the Ngatiwai Trust Board, Whangarei. 36pp. Buxton R.T. et al (2014) Drivers of seabird population recovery on New Zealand islands after predator eradication. Conserv Biol 28:333–344 Dunnet, G. M. 1985. Pycroft’s petrel in the breeding season at Hen and Chickens Islands. Notornis 32: 5-21 Sibson, R.B. 1949. A visit to Hen island. Notornis 3: 183-185 Taylor, G. A. 2000. Action Plan for Seabird Conservation in New Zealand. Part B. Non-threatened Seabirds. Threatened Spe-cies Occasional Publication No 17. Department of Conservation, Wellington. 436pp. Waugh, S.M., Tennyson, A.J.D., Taylor, G.A., Wilson, K-J. 2013. Population sizes of shearwaters (Puffinus spp.) breeding in New Zealand with recommendations for monitoring. Tuhinga 24: 159-204.