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Site description (2015 baseline)

Mount Paterson is one of 16 nunataks situated on the eastern side of the Rockefeller Mountains, Marie Byrd Land. It is a pyramid-shaped peak that rises to ~690 m.

The IBA qualifies on the basis of the concentration of seabirds present (in particular Antarctic Petrel (Thalassoica antarctica)) and comprises the ice free areas at Mount Paterson.

There are no research stations nearby. The closest permanent stations are Scott Base (NZL) and McMurdo Station (USA), ~850 km to the southwest in the southern Ross Sea.

Key biodiversity

Mount Paterson was visited in 1987/88 and an Antarctic Petrel colony was observed occupying the eastern, southern and western slopes of the mountain (Broady et al . 1989). Approximately 10 000 birds were present on the eastern and southern slopes with another 5000 birds on the western slope, and Broady et al . (1989) estimated that in total around 10 000 breeding pairs were present. A small colony of Snow Petrels ( Pagodroma nivea ) of several hundred birds was observed on the steep upper crags of the southernmost peak (Broady et al . 1989). No other birds are known to breed in the area.

Non-bird biodiversity: None known.

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Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2025) Important Bird Area factsheet: Mount Paterson (Antarctica). Downloaded from https://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/mount-paterson-iba-antarctica on 24/01/2025.