Île Foch, Île Sainte Lanne Gramont and Île Howe (6913)
French Southern Territories, Antarctica
Site overview
KBA status: confirmed
Global KBA criteria: B2
Year of last assessment: 2001
National site name: Île Foch, Île Sainte Lanne Gramont and Île Howe
Central coordinates: Latitude: -49.0000, Longitude: 69.2500
System: marine, terrestrial
Elevation (m): 0 to 687
Area of KBA (km2): 542.67813
Protected area coverage (%): 100.00
KBA classification: Global
Legacy site: Yes
Site details
Site description: The islands are located between the Loranchet and Joffre peninsulas of Grande Terre, just off its central north-western shore. The site comprises three large islands (Île Foch, the largest, Île Sainte Lanne Gramont and Île Howe) as well as several smaller ones (Île MacMurdo, Île Briand, Îles Dayman and Îlots Hallet). The landscape is rugged, consisting of coastal cliffs and rocky ridges inland, cut across by fjords and valleys. The site is free of introduced mammals, with the exception of Île Howe where rabbits occur. Other than Île Howe, the site’s vegetation is well preserved and more dense than on Grande Terre.
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: See Box for key species. At least 29 species breed. Populations of petrels are thought to be large due the absence of introduced mammals, but data are incomplete. Île Sainte Lanne Gramont, in particular, is poorly known. Large populations of penguins also occur, with over 3,000 pairs of Pygoscelis papua and 18,500 pairs of Eudyptes chrysocome. Twenty pairs of Diomedea exulans breed on Île Howe (1989 data) as do several tens of pairs of Pachyptila turtur. Pelecanoides georgicus is also common. It is possible that numbers of breeding Phoebetria palpebrata, Pterodroma brevirostris, P. mollis, Pachyptila desolata, Procellaria aequinoctialis, Fregetta tropica Pelecanoides urinatrix, Phalacrocorax verrucosus, Anas eatoni and Sterna virgata exceed thresholds, but quantitative data are lacking. Non-bird biodiversity: The mammals Mirounga leonina and Arctocephalus gazella breed.
Delineation rationale: Type 1 marine IBA: suitable for the seaward extension approach.
Habitats
Land use: nature conservation and research | not utilised
Threats
Summary of threats to biodiversity at KBA: Île Foch is an ‘Area restricted to scientific and technical research’, to which access is limited. The rest of the site is, however, unprotected. Île Foch and Île Sainte Lanne Gramont are proposed Nature Reserves. There is a permanent risk of colonization by introduced mammal species.