Data Zone
Country/territory: Antarctica
IBA criteria met: A4iii (2015)
For more information about IBA criteria, please click here
Area: 8 hectares (0.08 km2)
Site description (2015 baseline)
Worley Point is a narrow, flat, rocky area extending ~1 km along the northwestern coast of Shepard Island, which lies adjacent to the Getz Ice Shelf, Marie Byrd Land. Shepard Island is of basaltic geology (Gohl 2010), is predominantly ice-covered, and rises to ~520 m at Mount Colburn.
The IBA qualifies on the basis of the concentration of seabirds present (in particular Adélie Penguin (Pygoscelis adeliae)) and comprises all ice free ground at Worley Point.
There are no research stations nearby. The closest permanent stations are Scott Base (NZL) and McMurdo Station (USA), located ~1570 km to the southwest in the southern Ross Sea.
Key biodiversity
Approximately 10 481 breeding pairs (95% CI: 6196, 17 123) of Adélie Penguin were present on Worley Point in December 2010, as estimated from satellite imagery (Lynch & LaRue 2014). Penguins occupy the entire ice free area in summer. No other information on birds in the area is available.
Non-bird biodiversity: None known.
Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Important Bird Area factsheet: Worley Point, Shepard Island (Antarctica). Downloaded from
https://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/worley-point-shepard-island-iba-antarctica on 26/12/2024.