O'Brien Island is a small rocky island in the
South Shetland Islands
The South Shetland Islands are a group of List of Antarctic and subantarctic islands, Antarctic islands located in the Drake Passage with a total area of . They lie about north of the Antarctic Peninsula, and between southwest of the n ...
of
Antarctica
Antarctica () is Earth's southernmost and least-populated continent. Situated almost entirely south of the Antarctic Circle and surrounded by the Southern Ocean (also known as the Antarctic Ocean), it contains the geographic South Pole. ...
. It lies south-west of
Aspland Island and rises to 540 m. A strong marine channel, named
Tasman Rip Tasman Rip () is a marine channel in the South Shetland Islands, Antarctica
Antarctica () is Earth's southernmost and least-populated continent. Situated almost entirely south of the Antarctic Circle and surrounded by the Southern Ocean ...
, runs between O'Brien Island and
Eadie Island.
The name dates back to the survey of the South Shetlands carried out by Edward Bransfield and William Smith in 1820, when it was applied to O'Brien, Eadie and Aspland Islands as a group. It is now established in international usage.
Important Bird Area
The island has been identified as an
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 ...
(IBA) 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 i ...
because there are records (from 1977) of it supporting large
breeding colonies of
chinstrap penguin
The chinstrap penguin (''Pygoscelis antarcticus'') is a species of penguin that inhabits a variety of islands and shores in the Southern Pacific and the Antarctic Oceans. Its name stems from the narrow black band under its head, which makes it a ...
s (21,000 pairs) and
southern fulmars (8000 pairs).
See also
*
List of Antarctic and Subantarctic islands
This is a list of Antarctic and sub-Antarctic islands.
* Antarctic islands are, in the strict sense, the islands around mainland Antarctica, situated on the Antarctic Plate, and south of the Antarctic Convergence. According to the terms of the A ...
References
Islands of the South Shetland Islands
Important Bird Areas of Antarctica
Seabird colonies
Penguin colonies
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