Data Zone
Country/territory: Antarctica
IBA criteria met: A4iii (2015)
For more information about IBA criteria, please click here
Area: 152 hectares (1.52 km2)
Site description (2015 baseline)
North Foreland is a headland extending several km from the permanent ice cap at the northeastern extremity of King George Island, lying at the eastern entrance to Emerald Cove. The IBA qualifies on the basis of the concentration of seabirds present (in particular Chinstrap Penguin (Pygoscelis antarctica)) and includes all of the ice-free area at North Foreland.
The nearest permanent scientific station is Comandante Ferraz (Brazil) which operates year-round on the northern shoreline of Admiralty Bay, located ~42 km to southwest, and which accommodates a maximum of ~40 people in the summer (COMNAP, Antarctic Facilities, accessed 24/08/2010).
Key biodiversity
Approximately 23 286 breeding pairs of Chinstrap Penguin were present at North Foreland in 1980 (Jablonski 1984). Shuford & Spear (1988b) reported an estimated 30 100 breeding pairs in January 1987. Southern Giant Petrels (Macronectes giganteus) are also believed to breed at North Foreland, with 248 pairs estimated nesting at the site in 1966 (Patterson et al. 2008). However, more recent census data for these species and other bird species in the area are not available.
Non-bird biodiversity: None known.
Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Important Bird Area factsheet: North Foreland, King George Island (Antarctica). Downloaded from
https://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/north-foreland-king-george-island-iba-antarctica on 27/12/2024.