Data Zone
Country/territory: Antarctica
IBA criteria met: A4ii (2015)
For more information about IBA criteria, please click here
Area: 7 hectares (0.07 km2)
Site description (2015 baseline)
Depot Island is of roughly triangular in shape and situated ~200 m off the coast of Evans Piedmont Glacier, southern Victoria Land. It is situated ~ 4 km north of Cape Ross and ~ 10 km southeast of Tripp Island. The ice free island is ~ 0.3 km long and up to 0.3 km wide.
The IBA qualifies on the basis of the South Polar Skua (Catharacta maccormicki) colony present at the site and comprises all of Depot Island.
The nearest permanent scientific stations are Scott Base (NZL) and McMurdo Station (USA) situated ~160 km to the southeast on Hut Point Peninsula, Ross Island.
Key biodiversity
South Polar Skuas breed on Gregory Island, with ~72 breeding pairs estimated in 1982 (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: Depot Island (Antarctica). Downloaded from
https://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/depot-island-iba-antarctica on 22/12/2024.