Wildlife of Saint Helena
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Saint Helena Saint Helena () is a British overseas territory located in the South Atlantic Ocean. It is a remote volcanic tropical island west of the coast of south-western Africa, and east of Rio de Janeiro in South America. It is one of three constitu ...
,
Ascension Island Ascension Island is an isolated volcanic island, 7°56′ south of the Equator in the South Atlantic Ocean. It is about from the coast of Africa and from the coast of South America. It is governed as part of the British Overseas Territory o ...
and
Tristan da Cunha Tristan da Cunha (), colloquially Tristan, is a remote group of volcanic islands in the South Atlantic Ocean. It is the most remote inhabited archipelago in the world, lying approximately from Cape Town in South Africa, from Saint Helena ...
, as well the other uninhabited islands nearby, are a haven for wildlife in the middle of the
Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe ...
. The islands are or were home to much
endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsew ...
flora and fauna, especially invertebrates, and many endemic fish species found in the reef ecosystems off the islands. The islands have been identified by
BirdLife International BirdLife International is a global partnership of non-governmental organizations that strives to conserve birds and their habitats. BirdLife International's priorities include preventing extinction of bird species, identifying and safeguarding ...
as
Important Bird Area An Important Bird and Biodiversity Area (IBA) is an area identified using an internationally agreed set of criteria as being globally important for the conservation of bird populations. IBA was developed and sites are identified by BirdLife Int ...
s for both their endemic landbirds and breeding
seabird Seabirds (also known as marine birds) are birds that are adapted to life within the marine environment. While seabirds vary greatly in lifestyle, behaviour and physiology, they often exhibit striking convergent evolution, as the same enviro ...
s. See Ascension scrub and grasslands, Saint Helena scrub and woodlands, and Tristan da Cunha–Gough Islands shrub and grasslands for more details of the
World Wildlife Fund The World Wide Fund for Nature Inc. (WWF) is an international non-governmental organization founded in 1961 that works in the field of wilderness preservation and the reduction of human impact on the environment. It was formerly named the Wo ...
-designated ecoregions.


Reptiles

There are no crocodilians or snakes on the islands. However, many
turtle Turtles are an order of reptiles known as Testudines, characterized by a special shell developed mainly from their ribs. Modern turtles are divided into two major groups, the Pleurodira (side necked turtles) and Cryptodira (hidden necked tu ...
s appear around them.


Birds


Saint Helena

Saint Helena Saint Helena () is a British overseas territory located in the South Atlantic Ocean. It is a remote volcanic tropical island west of the coast of south-western Africa, and east of Rio de Janeiro in South America. It is one of three constitu ...
is not now a major breeding site for seabirds as Ascension is, but it used to have more endemic birds, all but one of which are now extinct. The wirebird (''Charadrius sanctaehelenae'') is a type of plover, and is the national bird. It is called the ''wirebird'' due to its thin legs that look like
wire Overhead power cabling. The conductor consists of seven strands of steel (centre, high tensile strength), surrounded by four outer layers of aluminium (high conductivity). Sample diameter 40 mm A wire is a flexible strand of metal. Wire is c ...
. Extinct birds on the island include the large Saint Helena petrel, small Saint Helena petrel, Saint Helena crake, Saint Helena swamphen,
Saint Helena dove The Saint Helena dove (''Dysmoropelia dekarchiskos'') was a species of flightless bird in the family Columbidae. It is monotypic within the genus ''Dysmoropelia''. It was endemic to the island of Saint Helena in the South Atlantic Ocean. It is ...
,
Saint Helena cuckoo The Saint Helena cuckoo (''Nannococcyx psix'') is an extinct bird. It was confirmed to have previously existed by a single humerus. Compared to other cuckoos, it was relatively small, and it probably lived in forests on the island of Saint Hel ...
and, most famously, the St. Helena hoopoe.


Ascension

Ascension Island Ascension Island is an isolated volcanic island, 7°56′ south of the Equator in the South Atlantic Ocean. It is about from the coast of Africa and from the coast of South America. It is governed as part of the British Overseas Territory o ...
used to be home to many breeding seabirds; most are now all but extinct on the main island, and the main breeding site is on nearby rat-free
Boatswain Bird Island Boatswain Bird Island, also spelt Boatswainbird Island, is a small island some off the east coast of Ascension Island in the South Atlantic Ocean with an area of approximately . It is administered from Georgetown on Ascension, which is part of ...
. Over 10,000 birds breed on this tiny island, which is home to Ascension frigatebirds, red-footed,
brown Brown is a color. It can be considered a composite color, but it is mainly a darker shade of orange. In the CMYK color model used in printing or painting, brown is usually made by combining the colors orange and black. In the RGB color model used ...
and masked boobies, red-billed and
white-tailed tropicbird The white-tailed tropicbird (''Phaethon lepturus'') is a tropicbird. It is the smallest of three closely related seabirds of the tropical oceans and smallest member of the order Phaethontiformes. It is found in the tropical Atlantic, western Paci ...
s (known as Boatswain birds), and petrels. The
sooty tern The sooty tern (''Onychoprion fuscatus'') is a seabird in the family Laridae. It is a bird of the tropical oceans, returning to land only to breed on islands throughout the equatorial zone. Taxonomy The sooty tern was described by Carl Linnaeu ...
, known locally as the wideawake tern because of its distinctive call, is the most common breeding seabird on the main island, and the airport is named after it. The
Ascension crake The Ascension crake (''Mundia elpenor'') is an extinct flightless bird that previously lived on Ascension Island in the South Atlantic Ocean. Like many other flightless birds on isolated islands, it was a rail. It was declared extinct by Groom ...
and the
Ascension night heron The Ascension night heron (''Nycticorax olsoni'') is an extinct night heron species from the genus ''Nycticorax'' endemic to the South Atlantic island of Ascension Island, Ascension. It is predominantly known from the bone fragments of six specim ...
, both flightless land birds, are now extinct. The largest native land animal is the
land crab A number of lineages of crabs have evolved to live predominantly on land. Examples of terrestrial crabs are found in the families Gecarcinidae and Gecarcinucidae, as well as in selected genera from other families, such as ''Sesarma'', althou ...
''
Johngarthia lagostoma ''Johngarthia lagostoma'' is a species of terrestrial crab that lives on Ascension Island and three other islands in the South Atlantic. It grows to a carapace width of on Ascension Island, where it is the largest native land animal. It exis ...
'' (formerly ''Gecarcinus lagostoma'').


Tristan da Cunha

Tristan da Cunha has the number of birds on a par with Ascension. Inaccessible Island and
Gough Island upright=1.3, Map of Gough island Gough Island ( ), also known historically as Gonçalo Álvares, is a rugged volcanic island in the South Atlantic Ocean. It is a dependency of Tristan da Cunha and part of the British overseas territory of Sain ...
are together a
UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...
World Heritage Site A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for h ...
and a wildlife reserve due to the large number of breeding seabirds found there, including endemics. The birds include the Tristan albatross, Atlantic yellow-nosed albatross,
sooty albatross The sooty albatross, dark-mantled sooty albatross or dark-mantled albatross,BirdLife International (2008b) (''Phoebetria fusca''), is a species of bird in the albatross family. They breed on sub-Antarctic islands and range at sea across the S ...
, Atlantic petrel, great-winged petrel,
soft-plumaged petrel The soft-plumaged petrel (''Pterodroma mollis'') is a species of seabird in the family Procellariidae. Distribution It breeds on islands in the Southern Hemisphere, nesting on Tristan da Cunha, Gough Island, the Prince Edward Islands, Crozet ...
,
grey petrel The grey petrel (''Procellaria cinerea''), also called the brown petrel, pediunker or grey shearwater is a species of seabird in the Procellariidae, or petrel family. It is pelagic and occurs in the open seas of the Southern Hemisphere, mainly b ...
,
broad-billed prion The broad-billed prion (''Pachyptila vittata'') is a small pelagic seabird in the shearwater and petrel family, Procellariidae. It is the largest prion, with grey upperparts plumage, and white underparts. The sexes are alike. It ranges from the ...
, Tristan skua, brown noddy, northern rockhopper penguin, great shearwater, sooty shearwater, Antarctic tern and Tristan thrush. The
Inaccessible Island rail The Inaccessible Island rail (''Laterallus rogersi'') is a small bird of the rail family, Rallidae. Endemic to Inaccessible Island in the Tristan Archipelago in the isolated south Atlantic, it is the smallest extant flightless bird in the worl ...
, the world's smallest living flightless bird, is endemic to Inaccessible Island. The Tristan albatross is also native to the islands of Tristan da Cunha, as well as the Atlantic petrel. Gough Island is home to the almost flightless
Gough Island moorhen The Gough moorhen (''Gallinula comeri'') is a medium-sized, almost flightless bird that is similar to the common moorhen (''Gallinula chloropus''), but is smaller, stockier, and has shorter wings. The bird has a distinctive yellow-tipped red Bea ...
and the critically endangered Gough bunting. The Brown skua is the top predator of the island's ecosystem, feeding on other seabirds as well as land birds such as the Inaccessible Island rail. However, birds of prey such as the
barn owl The barn owl (''Tyto alba'') is the most widely distributed species of owl in the world and one of the most widespread of all species of birds, being found almost everywhere except for the polar and desert regions, Asia north of the Himalaya ...
and the
Amur falcon The Amur falcon (''Falco amurensis'') is a small raptor of the falcon family. It breeds in south-eastern Siberia and Northern China before migrating in large flocks across India and over the Arabian Sea to winter in Southern and East Africa. ...
are occasional visitors. In 1956, eight Gough moorhens were released at Sandy Point on Tristan, and have subsequently colonized the island. Patrick O'Brian, in the fourth volume of his Aubrey-Maturin series has the ornithologist Fortescue in discussion with Stephen Maturin speak of an indigenous gallinule he observed on the island.


Mammals

There are no native land mammals on either Saint Helena or Ascension, only sea mammals such as whales and seals. Over the centuries several introduced mammals have gone feral. On Saint Helena these are cats, dogs, rabbits, rats and mice; donkeys and goats no longer roam free. On Ascension the feral animals still common in parts of the island are donkeys, sheep, rats and mice; the cats have been eliminated. Goats were introduced to Saint Helena by the Portuguese to provide passing ships with fresh meat.
Tristan da Cunha Tristan da Cunha (), colloquially Tristan, is a remote group of volcanic islands in the South Atlantic Ocean. It is the most remote inhabited archipelago in the world, lying approximately from Cape Town in South Africa, from Saint Helena ...
hosts breeding grounds for subantarctic fur seals and southern elephant seals, several
whale Whales are a widely distributed and diverse group of fully aquatic placental marine mammals. As an informal and colloquial grouping, they correspond to large members of the infraorder Cetacea, i.e. all cetaceans apart from dolphins and ...
species are also found in the waters around Tristan. Cats were eradicated from Tristan da Cunha in 1974. The
RSPB The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) is a Charitable_organization#United_Kingdom, charitable organisation registered in Charity Commission for England and Wales, England and Wales and in Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator, ...
is also developing plans for the eradication of house mice from
Gough Island upright=1.3, Map of Gough island Gough Island ( ), also known historically as Gonçalo Álvares, is a rugged volcanic island in the South Atlantic Ocean. It is a dependency of Tristan da Cunha and part of the British overseas territory of Sain ...
.


Terrestrial invertebrates

About 1100 species of land invertebrates have been recorded from Saint Helena, and over 400 of these are endemic and occur nowhere else.
Prosperous Bay Plain Prosperous Bay Plain is an area on the eastern coast of Saint Helena, a British island territory in the South Atlantic Ocean. It is the site of the new Saint Helena Airport, and is notable for its high invertebrate biodiversity. Geography Prosper ...
, the site of the new
Saint Helena Airport Saint Helena Airport is an international airport on Saint Helena, a remote island in the south Atlantic Ocean, in the British Overseas Territory of Saint Helena, Ascension, and Tristan da Cunha. The construction of the runway was finishe ...
, is the only site known for about 55 of these endemic species. The
Saint Helena giant earwig The Saint Helena earwig or Saint Helena giant earwig (''Labidura herculeana'') is an extinct species of very large earwig endemic to the oceanic island of Saint Helena in the south Atlantic Ocean. Description Growing as large as long (includi ...
is almost certainly extinct, the last chitinous remains having been found in the 1990s. However it is firmly in Saint Helena folklore and hopes linger on. The central peaks of Saint Helena are home to an extraordinary set of
ground beetle Ground beetles are a large, cosmopolitan distribution, cosmopolitan family (biology), family of beetles, the Carabidae, with more than 40,000 species worldwide, around 2,000 of which are found in North America and 2,700 in Europe. As of 2015, it i ...
s of the tribe Bembidiini, which are strikingly morphologically different from bembidiines found elsewhere. They have been found to form a clade of genetically similar species with their sister group being '' Bembidion alsium'' from the Indian Ocean island of
Réunion Réunion (; french: La Réunion, ; previously ''Île Bourbon''; rcf, label= Reunionese Creole, La Rényon) is an island in the Indian Ocean that is an overseas department and region of France. It is located approximately east of the island ...
. The African subgenus '' Omotaphus'' is the sister group to this pair, suggesting that both the Saint Helena and Reunion beetles were derived from single dispersal events from a now-extinct African lineage that was a sister to ''Omotaphus''. All of the Saint Helena bembidiine species are threatened by
habitat destruction Habitat destruction (also termed habitat loss and habitat reduction) is the process by which a natural habitat becomes incapable of supporting its native species. The organisms that previously inhabited the site are displaced or dead, thereby ...
and
invasive species An invasive species otherwise known as an alien is an introduced organism that becomes overpopulated and harms its new environment. Although most introduced species are neutral or beneficial with respect to other species, invasive species ad ...
, with some likely to already be extinct. The only poisonous animal on St Helena is ''
Isometrus maculatus ''Isometrus maculatus'', commonly as the lesser brown scorpion, is a species of scorpion in the family Buthidae. Its distribution is pantropical; it is an introduced species in Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the We ...
'', a scorpion from the family Buthidae. Restoration plans for Inaccessible Island include investigating the impact and feasibility of eradicating the parasitic wasp '' Ichneumon insulator''.


Marine life

Saint Helena and Ascension Island both have excellent and well preserved
coral Corals are marine invertebrates within the class Anthozoa of the phylum Cnidaria. They typically form compact colonies of many identical individual polyps. Coral species include the important reef builders that inhabit tropical oceans and sec ...
ecosystem An ecosystem (or ecological system) consists of all the organisms and the physical environment with which they interact. These biotic and abiotic components are linked together through nutrient cycles and energy flows. Energy enters the syste ...
s, which are very diverse and contain many endemic and non-endemic fish species. The following fish are endemic to Ascension Island: * Resplendent angelfish (''Centropyge resplendens'') * Apollo damselfish (''Chromis sp.'') * Lubbock's yellowtail damselfish (''Stegastes lubbocki'') * Ascension goby (''Priolepis ascensionis'') * White hawkfish (''Amblycirrhitus earnshawi'') * Marmalade razorfish (''Xyrichtys blanchardi'') * Seabream (''Diplodus ascensionis'') * Ascension wrasse (''Thalassoma ascensionis'') The following are found in both Saint Helena and Ascension Islands; * Bicolor butterflyfish (''Prognathodes dichrous'') * Axillary-spot cardinalfish (''Apogon axillaris'') *
Parrotfish Parrotfishes are a group of about 90 fish species regarded as a Family (biology), family (Scaridae), or a subfamily (Scarinae) of the wrasses. With about 95 species, this group's largest species richness is in the Indo-Pacific. They are found ...
(''Sparisoma strigatum'') * Hogfish Island wrasse (''Bodianus insularis'') The following fish are found only on the island of Saint Helena; * St Helena butterflyfish (''Chaetodon sanctaehelenae'') * St Helena flounder (''Bothus mellissi'') * St Helena pufferfish (''Canthigaster sanctaehelenae'') * St Helena wrasse (''Thalassoma sanctaehelenae'') Green turtles make a 3000-mile journey every 3–4 years from Brazil to
Ascension Island Ascension Island is an isolated volcanic island, 7°56′ south of the Equator in the South Atlantic Ocean. It is about from the coast of Africa and from the coast of South America. It is governed as part of the British Overseas Territory o ...
to breed. They have been a protected species on the island since the mid-20th century and lay their eggs on the unspoilt beaches of the island. The turtles who survive to adulthood will return to breed on the island. On Tristan da Cunha there is an endemic species of lobster, the
Tristan rock lobster ''Jasus paulensis'', also commonly known as the St Paul rock lobster, is a species of spiny lobster found in the waters around Saint Paul Island in the southern Indian Ocean and around Tristan da Cunha in the southern Atlantic Ocean. At one time ...
, which appears on the coat of arms of the territory. Other marine life includes several temperate water fish species, as well as the seals and whales listed above.


Flora

The Flora of Saint Helena is particularly diverse, with hundreds of endangered endemic species. In recent years there has been a program to conserve and replant the great forest on the island which was destroyed over the years by human activity, causing widespread
soil erosion Soil erosion is the denudation or wearing away of the upper layer of soil. It is a form of soil degradation. This natural process is caused by the dynamic activity of erosive agents, that is, water, ice (glaciers), snow, air (wind), plants, and ...
on the island. The Millennium Forest Project has been successful and the forest is expanding rapidly. There are a few plants endemic to
Ascension Island Ascension Island is an isolated volcanic island, 7°56′ south of the Equator in the South Atlantic Ocean. It is about from the coast of Africa and from the coast of South America. It is governed as part of the British Overseas Territory o ...
also, these include the '' Marattia purpurascens'', '' Asplenium ascensionis'', '' Xiphopteris ascensionense'', ''
Pteris adscensionis ''Pteris adscensionis'' is a fern species in the subfamily Pteridoideae of the family Pteridaceae. It is endemic to Ascension Island, and there are thought to be fewer than 500 individuals left in the wild. Its natural habitat In ecol ...
'', '' Euphorbia origanoides'' & '' Sporobolus caespitosus''. There are several other extinct species. Ascension contains one of the world's largest artificial forests, planted over the past hundred years with mainly introduced species, on Green Mountain. This has threatened the endemic species on the Island. The management plan for the Gough and Inaccessible Islands World Heritage Site includes actions to actions to develop and implement an overall biosecurity plan for the islands. This includes steps to manage and eradicate non-native species such as an ongoing programme on
Gough Island upright=1.3, Map of Gough island Gough Island ( ), also known historically as Gonçalo Álvares, is a rugged volcanic island in the South Atlantic Ocean. It is a dependency of Tristan da Cunha and part of the British overseas territory of Sain ...
to eradicate
Sagina procumbens ''Sagina procumbens'' is a species of flowering plant. in the family Caryophyllaceae known by the common names procumbent pearlwort, birdeye pearlwort and matted pearlwort. It can be found throughout the Northern Hemisphere and parts of South Ame ...
. Eradication programs on Gough Island are ongoing and are expected to require years of 'concerted effort'.Bisser, P. et al.
"Strategies to eradicate the invasive plant procumbent pearlwort Sagina procumbens on Gough Island, 2010"
Retrieved on 12 February 2014.
There is also a programme on Inaccessible Island to eradicate
New Zealand Flax New Zealand flax describes the common New Zealand perennial plants ''Phormium tenax'' and ''Phormium colensoi'', known by the Māori names ''harakeke'' and ''wharariki'' respectively. Although given the common name 'flax' they are quite distinc ...
and other invasive plants.


Conservation


Saint Helena

Sadly, most of Saint Helena's endemic birds became extinct since human habitation began. Still, Wirebird breeding programs are on-going, although numbers are still falling. The Millennium Forest Project has been highly successful and has boosted the chances of Saint Helena's treasured flora and fauna, and this is the main concentration of conservation on the island. ;Important Bird Areas *
North-east Saint Helena Important Bird Area The North-east Saint Helena Important Bird Area is a 48 km2 tract of land covering about 39% of the island of Saint Helena, a British Overseas Territory in the South Atlantic Ocean. It has been identified by BirdLife International as an ...
*
South-west Saint Helena Important Bird Area The South-west Saint Helena Important Bird Area is a 45 km2 tract of land covering about 37% of the island of Saint Helena, a British Overseas Territory in the South Atlantic Ocean. It has been identified by BirdLife International as an ...


Ascension

Conservation has been a big issue on
Ascension Island Ascension Island is an isolated volcanic island, 7°56′ south of the Equator in the South Atlantic Ocean. It is about from the coast of Africa and from the coast of South America. It is governed as part of the British Overseas Territory o ...
, and the Ascension Heritage Society has been set up to help deal with the issues. There have been successful programs for protecting green turtles, and the charity has worked hard with the
RSPB The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) is a Charitable_organization#United_Kingdom, charitable organisation registered in Charity Commission for England and Wales, England and Wales and in Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator, ...
to protect the birdlife on the island. The main activities going on at the moment are a cat and rat eradication program, along with attempts to breed the native plant species on the island. ;Important Bird Areas * Ascension Island *
Boatswain Bird Island Boatswain Bird Island, also spelt Boatswainbird Island, is a small island some off the east coast of Ascension Island in the South Atlantic Ocean with an area of approximately . It is administered from Georgetown on Ascension, which is part of ...


Tristan da Cunha

Tristan da Cunha Tristan da Cunha (), colloquially Tristan, is a remote group of volcanic islands in the South Atlantic Ocean. It is the most remote inhabited archipelago in the world, lying approximately from Cape Town in South Africa, from Saint Helena ...
has had some extremely successful programs in conservation, most notably of which is the world heritage site of Inaccessible Island and
Gough Island upright=1.3, Map of Gough island Gough Island ( ), also known historically as Gonçalo Álvares, is a rugged volcanic island in the South Atlantic Ocean. It is a dependency of Tristan da Cunha and part of the British overseas territory of Sain ...
. The low population has helped matters on the islands, as well as the non-existence of cats and other pests. ;Important Bird Areas * Tristan da Cunha * Inaccessible Island * Nightingale Islands * Gough Island


Invasive species

A population of house mice is present on Tristan da Cunha. They are thought to have been accidentally introduced by 19th century seal hunters who would dock on the islands, and have adapted to grow 50% larger in size than mainland house mice. These mice have adapted by consuming sea bird eggs and chicks (as they nest on the ground), killing an estimated 2 million chicks annually.


References


External links and sources


UK Overseas Territories Conservation ForumThe Tristan da Cunha Government official websiteAscension Island Heritage SocietyThe Official Website of the Royal Society for the Protection of BirdsAscension Island Administrator official websiteAscension Conservation websiteSaint Helena Government official websiteSaint Helena Tourist office website
{{WildlifeofAfrica 01 . . . Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha