Acoustic surveys for Black‐capped Petrel Valle Nuevo, Hispaniola – 2016/17 : final report

Abstract

This report summarizes data collected to detect undiscovered Black‐capped Petrel breeding aggregations on Hispaniola as part of an ongoing survey effort begun in 2015. Specifically, this exploratory acoustic survey was carried out to listen for petrel vocalizations in locations where radar surveys had previously detected radar targets with flight characteristics like those of petrels attending breeding colonies (relatively high‐speeds, strait‐line trajectories to and from the sea followed by circling flight, activity after sunset). The goal of this acoustic survey was to find independent evidence that these radar targets were petrels, and to quantify patterns of acoustic activity that could help direct ground searches for undiscovered breeding aggregations. This survey builds on older data collected between Dec 2015 and May 2016, adding new survey points and data from the early part of the 2016‐2017 breeding season.