Lindsey Islands (45242)
Antarctica, Antarctica
Site overview
KBA status: confirmed
Global KBA criteria: D1a
Year of last assessment: 2015
National site name: Lindsey Islands
Central coordinates: Latitude: -73.6006, Longitude: -103.0893
System: marine, terrestrial
Elevation (m): 0 to 40
Area of KBA (km2): 8.41275
KBA classification: Global
Legacy site: Yes
Site details
Site description: The Lindsey Islands are situated west of the northern extremity of Canisteo Peninsula, which projects into the eastern Amundsen Sea between Ferrero and Cranton Bays on the Walgreen Coast, Marie Byrd Land. The island group consists of one island of several km across in the east, and a smaller island with several nearby outliers in the west. Some descriptions (e.g. Lindsey 1995) include the island group ~5 km to the southwest as within the Lindsey group. However, these are named as the Schaefer Islands, distinct from the Lindsey Islands, by US place naming authorities and this convention is followed here. Available mapping incorrectly shows many of the individual islands within the group as merged together. The IBA qualifies on the basis of the Adélie Penguin (Pygoscelis adeliae) colony present, and comprises all of the (more narrowly defined) Lindsey Islands group and the intervening marine area. The island group is the emergent part of a shelf that is less than 200 m deep, and is formed of granitic rocks. The islands are relatively flat, the highest point being ~40 m on the largest island. The islands are mostly ice free in summer (Lindsey 1995), and two small freshwater ponds are present on the largest island. There are no research stations nearby. The closest permanent stations are Rothera (GBR) and San Martín (ARG), located ~1450 km to the northeast in Marguerite Bay, Antarctic Peninsula.
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: Approximately 52 670 breeding pairs of Adélie Penguin were present on Lindsey Islands as estimated from March 2011 satellite imagery (unpublished data, H. Lynch & M. LaRue pers. comm. 2014). The colony occupies the eastern and southeastern coasts of the eastern island, and most of three main outliers and the northern half of the largest of the western group of islands. South Polar Skuas (Catharacta maccormicki) are reported to breed on the islands, although numbers are not known (Lindsey 1995). No other birds are known to breed in the area. Non-bird biodiversity: Southern Elephant Seals (Mirounga leonina) and Leopard Seals (Hydrurga leptonyx) have been reported in the area (Lindsey 1995).
Delineation rationale: Shortest perimeter around islands and/or ice-free areas >5km2.
Threats
Summary of threats to biodiversity at KBA: None known.
Additional information
References: Lindsey, A.A. 1995. The exploration history of the Lindsey Islands, Antarctica, 1928-1994. Proceedings of the Indiana Academy of Science 104: 85-92. Lynch, H.J. & LaRue, M.A. 2014. First global census of the Adélie Penguin. The Auk 131(4): 457-66. doi:10.1642/AUK-14-31.1