— 2007 Season —
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| Lighthouse on Matinicus Rock. Credit: USFWS |
Matinicus Rock is a 27 acre island located 24 miles south of Owls Head. The island was administered by the U.S. Coast Guard for over 155 years, and is the site of the historic Matinicus Rock Light Station. National Audubon Society placed wardens on the island to protect the nesting seabirds in the early 1900s, and as a result Matinicus Rock was the only puffin colony (2 pairs) within Maine to survive the market hunting that decimated most seabird colonies.
Since 1900, Matinicus Rock has been a principal breeding site for Arctic terns on the Maine coast. In 1901, there were approximately 500 pairs of terns, and the population increased to approximately 3,000 pairs by 1931. By 1990, 1,252 pairs of Arctic terns nested on Matinicus Rock. During the early 1990s the colony experienced a decline in the nesting population that was likely associated with the dramatic increase in nesting terns at the nearby Seal Island National Wildlife Refuge. The Coast Guard transferred the island to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in 1999.
In 2007, 663 common terns and 1,790 Arctic terns nested on Matinicus Rock. Compared to 2006, this represents an 80 percent increase in the tern population on the island. We believe that the excessive gull predation on Seal Island resulted in the influx of terns to Matinicus Rock. The island also supported 1,011 pairs of laughing gulls, and we counted 720 adult razorbills on the island.
We did not conduct a puffin census this season, but the island supported 310 pairs in 2006. The island continues to be cooperatively managed by National Audubon Society and the Service.
Recovery of Arctic and Common Terns on Matinicus Rock: 1996 – 2007
