Data Zone
Country/territory: Antarctica
IBA criteria met: A4ii (2015)
For more information about IBA criteria, please click here
Area: 70 ha
Site description (2015 baseline)
Gregory Island, McMurdo Sound, is situated a few hundred metres off the coast of the Evans Piedmont Glacier, southern Victoria Land. It is situated ~5 km north of Cape Archer and ~8 km south of Cape Ross. The ice free island is ~1.2 km long and up to 0.8 km wide.
The IBA qualifies on the basis of the South Polar Skua (Catharacta maccormicki) colony present at the site and comprises all of Gregory Island.
The nearest permanent scientific stations are Scott Base (NZL) and McMurdo (USA) situated ~150 km to the south-east on Hut Point Peninsula, Ross Island.
Key biodiversity
South Polar Skuas breed on Gregory Island, with ~119 breeding pairs estimated in 1983 (Ainley et al. 1986). No recent information on the colony is available, and no other birds are known to breed in the area.
Non-bird biodiversity: None known.
Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Important Bird Area factsheet: Gregory Island (Antarctica). Downloaded from
https://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/gregory-island-iba-antarctica on 27/11/2024.