Seabird Population Makes Remarkable Comeback

The threatened Peruvian Diving-petrel has made an extraordinary recovery on Chile’s Choros Island, with its breeding population increasing approximately 300-fold since 1980 following decades of conservation and habitat restoration.

“When science, restoration, and long-term partnerships come together, nature can recover in ways that exceed expectations,” said Coral Wolf, Conservation Impact Program Manager at Island Conservation, highlighting the power of sustained conservation efforts.

The island now supports nearly 90,000 breeding pairs, compared with just 11,934 in 2013, representing a 7.5-fold increase in only eleven years. A major turning point came in 2013, when conservation organisations and Chile’s National Forestry Corporation (CONAF) successfully removed invasive European rabbits that had damaged nesting burrows and degraded breeding grounds. Since their removal, the seabirds’ breeding area has nearly doubled, allowing colonies to expand into restored habitats. Choros Island, part of the Humboldt Penguin National Reserve, is now the species’ most important breeding stronghold in Chile. The recovery also contributed to the species’ reclassification from Endangered to Near Threatened by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) in 2020, showing how targeted restoration and long-term protection can reverse severe wildlife declines.