Gough and Inaccessible Islands

Substantial threat to the important seabird colonies from invasive species (mice)

The World Heritage Centre and IUCN noted, in the state of conservation report on invasive species impacts on Henderson Island (United Kingdom) presented to the 32nd session of the World Heritage Committee, that information was received on a similar issue of a substantial threat to seabird colonies from invasive species on Gough Island, part of another World Heritage property in the United Kingdom, Gough and Inaccessible Islands.

Therefore, the State Party provided a report on the state of conservation of the property to the World Heritage Centre, dated 1 February 2009. The State Party reports that globally important seabird colonies on Gough Island are currently under threat from two invasive species: a) rodents, descendents of house mice brought in from ships in the 19th century, which pose a particular threat to the islands birdlife through predation of eggs and chicks; and b) invasion of an alien groundcover, procumbent pearlwort, Sagina procumbens, first discovered in the 1990s and established on the cliffs around the weather base on Gough Island. Dense mats of this invasive plant form on disturbed ground and compete strongly with existing vegetation.

The Government of the United Kingdom is supporting the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) through a Joint Oversees Territories Environment Programme (OTEP) to investigate the feasibility of rodent eradication. This programme has also provided a grant to the Government of Tristan da Cunha for Sagina procumbens eradication. The RSPB published a feasibility study for the eradication of house mice from Gough Island in May 2008.

The State Party provided limited information on the impact of invasive species on the Outstanding Universal Value and integrity of the property. However, research on the island by the RSPB, University of Cape Town and other institutions indicates serious decline of several bird species. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species has revised the conservation status of several declining bird species including the endangered Northern Rockhopper Penguins, and critically endangered Tristan Albatross, and Gough Bunting. Surveys of Gough Bunting in 2007 suggest that the population is 400-500 pairs.

The United Kingdom Overseas Territory (UKOT) Conservation Forum research findings indicate that the mice are responsible for breeding failures of the Tristan Albatross and Atlantic Petrel. The Conservation Forum also reports additional threats to the bird populations within the property from longline fishing activities in the region, with significant impact on at least five species of the property’s seabirds, including the critically endangered Tristan Albatross. The State Party reports that the UK Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) has provided an officer who is locally based in the Falkland Islands to provide additional support, as part of UK’s commitment under the Agreement on the Conservation of Albatrosses and Petrels (ACPA).

The World Heritage Centre and IUCN recall that the World Heritage Bureau in 2000 had reviewed the situation of Gough Island and noted information that the invasive species Sagina had been eradicated, and that the Bureau invited the State Party to keep the future situation of the property under close review. IUCN notes that the eradication and management of invasive species requires on-going, continuous efforts and regular monitoring with sufficient funding to support necessary research and control programmes. The World Heritage Centre and IUCN encourage the State Party to work with all agencies concerned to coordinate urgent action in the eradication of invasive species and management of future invasive species outbreaks and to share their experiences with other States Parties.