EPIC Seabird Breeding Atlas of the Lesser Antilles 2001-2019

Katharine Lowrie, David Lowrie, Juliana Coffey, and Natalia Collier, Environmental Protection in the Caribbean

Environmental Protection in the Caribbean (EPIC) has created the first Atlas of breeding marine bird colonies in the Lesser Antillean region of the Caribbean using a consistent methodology for all EPIC field studies. This Atlas includes estimates of the breeding population size, location, and site-specific threats for surveyed colonies in the Lesser Antilles from 2001 to 2010. Through broadening partnerships and funding, our goal is to periodically update this dataset while also addressing threats identified at priority sites.

The few data sets available for the Caribbean indicate that seabird populations are declining at alarming levels. As such, it is currently impractical to effectively prioritize and justify conservation projects to preserve the biodiversity of this region. Major causes for this decline include disturbance, habitat destruction, and predation. Some undocumented breeding populations have certainly disappeared without notice.

Most Caribbean seabird populations are estimated using antiquated or incomplete records. By systematically documenting the breeding seabirds of the rapidly developing Lesser Antilles,this Atlas offers the first comprehensive regional perspective on seabird populations using consistent methodology.

The dataset combines two separate data collection periods: 2001-2004 and 2009-2010 each of which has data in a different format. See the attributes definition for the format difference between the two periods.

Invasives/threats data is provided in a separate CSV file and included in the download file.

The Atlas is also available in print and e-book formats, which contain contributed third-party information for the French Antilles, Antigua & Barbuda, and Barbados.

The dataset has been updated over time as outlined below. Each entry includes the version number, release date, type of change, and a short description.

Overview

Attributes described below represent those in the original dataset provided by the provider.
Only minimum required attributes are visible and downloadable online. Other attributes may be obtained upon provider's permission.

Attributes in dataset

Attribute (table column)	Description
oid
series	Location ID assigned by OBIS-SEAMAP: Country-Location name
record_id	Record ID in the original data (not unique in the two periods)
survey
country	Country name
isl_group	Island group (2010 data only)
island	Island (2010 data only)
isl_group2
location	Location
alt_name	Alternative name (2010 data only)
x	X in UTM 20N (2010 data only)
y	Y in UTM 20N (2010 data only)
latitude	Latitude in decimal degrees
longitude	Longitude in decimal degrees
year	Year of observation
obs_datetime
start_time	Start time, if available (2010 data only)
end_time	End time, if available (2010 data only)
observer
species_code
common_name
sp_tsn	ITIS Taxonomic Serial Number added by OBIS-SEAMAP
survey_type	Survey type code (2010 data only)
survey_methods	Survey type description
type
land_or_sea
atlas_pairs	Number of pairs (2010 data only)
adults_lowest	Lowest number of adults (2001-2004 data only)
adults_highest	Highest number of adults (2001-2004 data only)
males
females
adults
immature
chicks
eggs
nests
cloud_cover	Cloud cover (2010 data only): 1-no clouds; 2-up to 25%; 3-up to 50%; 4-up to total coverage
sea_state	Sea state (2010 data only): 1-flat calm; 2-small waves; 3-moderate waves; 4-large, white wave crests; 5-waves breaking high onto rocks
wind	Wind in Beaufort scale (2010 data only): 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, >4
rain	Rain (2010 data only):1-none; 2-discontinuous light; 3-discontinuous heavy; 4-Continuous light; 5-continuous heavy
comments
breeding_confirmed	Flag of breeding confirmed
breeding_stage	Breeding stage (2001-2004 data only)
year_submitted	Indicate the period of data (2011 for 2010 data; 2007 for 2001-2004 data)
full_island_surveyed
complete_count_of_all_birds
ref
geom