Document ID: chunk:federal_register_of_legislation:F2022L00775:reg:18:p80
Version: federal_register_of_legislation:F2022L00775
Segment Type: reg
Provision Reference: reg 18 (pt 80/152)
Character Range: 261316–264199

pilchard, anchovies and jack mackerel, but also squid and garfish. Prey is caught mainly by plunge-diving, but the species is also seen regularly attending trawlers.

   Population Estimates and Trends
A global population estimate has not been quantified (BirdLife International 2019). The population is suspected to be increasing following a reduction in human persecution and the establishment of new colonies in Victoria and Tasmania in recent years. Numbers of Australasian Gannet have been increasing since 1950, although some colonies have disappeared, and others have decreased in population (Bunce et al. 2002). Between 1980 and 2000, the population in Australian waters increased from approximately 6,600 to 20,000 breeding pairs (Bunce et al. 2002). The most recent comprehensive New Zealand census was in 1981, yielding an estimate of 46,600 pairs, estimated to have increased to around 55,000 pairs in 2006 (Wodzicki et al 1984; Bunce et al. 2002).
Colony location is related to sea surface temperature, which in turn influences the presence of fish. Many colonies have limited space and birds seek new locations once the nest sites in a colony are full. In Tasmania, there are colonies at Eddystone Rock and Pedra Branca off the south coast, and Black Pyramid Rock off the northwest coast. The colony on Black Pyramid increased from 500 pairs in 1961 to 12,300 pairs in 1998 (Bunce et al. 2002). Eddystone Rock increased from 20 pairs in 1947 to 189 pairs in 1998, and Pedra Branca grew from 1,000 pairs in 1939 to 3,300 pairs by 1995, but both these sites have little or no room for expansion (Bunce et al. 2002). Conversely, the colony at Cat Island, Furneaux Group decreased from an estimated 5,000 –10,000 pairs in 1908 to nil in the 1980s due to human persecution (Serventy et al. 1971; BirdLife International 2019), and a fire that destroyed the colony in 1984 (Brothers et al. 2001). More recently, small numbers of pre-fledged chicks have been observed at a number of known roost sites on Tasmanian offshore islands, including Bass Pyramid, Judgement Rocks and Wright Rocks in eastern Bass Strait and Hippolyte Rock in the south-east.

112 Wildlife Conservation Plan for Seabirds
Species profiles

  Conservation Concerns and Actions
Bycatch is a concern for all gannet species and Australasian Gannets interact with fisheries throughout their inshore foraging range with considerable potential for impacts from longline and set-net fisheries (del Hoyo et al. 2019). In New Zealand, Australasian Gannets have been assessed as being at relatively low risk from commercial fisheries with an estimated annual mortality of 62 individuals (95% confidence interval 7-222) (Richard and Abraham 2013). In New Zealand, the greatest mortality was observed in set-net fisheries (Richard and Abraham 2013).

  Recommended Management Actions
        Quantify the