Specially Protected Areas in Antarctica

Purpose

The purpose of SPAs is to preserve both unique and representative examples of the natural ecological systems of areas in Antarctica which are of outstanding scientific interest.

Entry to an SPA is prohibited without a permit. SPAs can only be entered for compelling scientific purposes which cannot be served elsewhere. Permits can only be issued by an appropriate national authority for its own nationals. Vehicles of any kind are forbidden. All except three SPAs have a Management Plan which must be complied with.

Descriptions of Specially Protected Areas in Antarctica
1.	Taylor Rookery, Mac. Robertson Land
	67°27'S, 60°52'E. Approximate area: 0.4 km². The area consists of the whole of the northernmost rock exposure on the eastern side of Taylor Glacier. Designation on the grounds that Taylor Rookery contains a colony of emperor penguins which is one of the few, and probably the largest, of the known colonies of this species located entirely on land. (See also SPA No.8). Proposed by Australia. Adopted at the ATCM IV (Santiago, 1966).
2.	Rookery Islands, Holme Bay, Mac. Robertson Land
	The area includes approximately 75 small islands within a rectangle centred on 67°37'S, 62°32'E. Approximate area: 30 km². Designation on the grounds that it has an unusual association of all six bird species resident in the Mawson Station (Australia) area. Two species, the southern giant petrel, which breeds here, and the cape pigeon, occur nowhere else in the region. Proposed by Australia. Adopted at the ATCM IV (Santiago, 1966).
3.	Ardery Island and Odbert Island, Budd Coast
	Ardery: 66°22'S, 110°27'E, Odbert: 66°22'S, 110°33'E. Approximate area: 1.9 km². The area lies in Vincennes Bay, 13 km south of the former Wilkes Station (Australia). Designation on the grounds that it supports several breeding species of petrel and provides an example of their habitat. Two of these species, the Antarctic petrel and Antarctic fulmar, are of particular scientific interest. Proposed by Australia. Adopted at the ATCM IV (Santiago, 1966).
4.	Sabrina Island, Balleny Islands
	66°57'S, 163°16'E. Approximate area: 0.4 km². Sabrina Island is 2 km south of Buckle Island. Designation on the grounds that the Balleny Islands, as the most northerly land in the Ross Sea region, support flora and fauna which reflect many circumpolar distributions at this latitude; and that Sabrina Island in particular provides a representative sample of such flora and fauna. Sabrina Island has no agreed Management Plan. Proposed by New Zealand. Adopted at the ATCM IV (Santiago, 1966).
5.	Beaufort Island, Ross Sea
	76°57'S, 166°56'E. Approximate area: 18.4 km². Beaufort Island lies 37 km north of Ross Island. Designation on the grounds that the island contains a substantial avifauna, that it is one of the most important breeding areas in the region, that it has the most extensive, continuous area of mosses known in the McMurdo Sound region, and that it should be protected in order to preserve the natural ecological system as a reference area. Proposed by New Zealand. Adopted at the ATCM IV (Santiago, 1966). Management Plan adopted at the ATCM XXI (Christchurch, 1997).
6.	Cape Crozier redesignated as SSSI No.4
7.	Cape Hallett, Victoria Land
	72°19'S, 170°13'E. Approximate area: 0.2 km². The area comprising a roughly rectangular block south of the northern coast of Cape Hallett between the road, which runs along the eastern side of Willett Cove and the western margin of the permanent ice sheet and to the north of an east-west line from a projection of the line of the road southward to a point 200 m south of 72°18'S to the margin of the permanent ice cap. Designated on the grounds that Cape Hallett includes a small area of particularly rich and diverse vegetation which supports a variety of terrestrial fauna and that the ecosystem includes a rich avifauna. Cape Hallett has no agreed Management Plan. Proposed by the USA. Adopted at the ATCM IV (Santiago, 1966).
8.	Dion Islands, Marguerite Bay, Antarctic Peninsula
	67°52'S, 68°42'W. Approximate area: 6 km². A group of small, rocky, low-lying islands in Marguerite Bay, about 13 km south of Adelaide Island. The area comprises all of the Dion Islands archipelago together with the intervening sea. Designation on the grounds that the only colony of emperor penguins known to exist on the west side of the Antarctic Peninsula is found here, and that the isolation of this colony from others of the same species makes it of outstanding scientific interest. It is also the most northerly and probably the smallest emperor penguin colony, and one of only two in which breeding occurs on land (see also SPA No.1). Adélie penguins and blue-eyed shags also breed here. Proposed by the UK. Adopted at the ATCM IV (Santiago, 1966).
9.	Green Island, Berthelot Islands, Antarctic Peninsula
	65°19'S, 64°09'W. Approximate area: 0.1 km². A small island situated 150 m north of the largest of the Berthelot Islands, located off the west coast of Graham Land. Designated on the grounds that the vegetation on Green Island is exceptionally rich, with well-developed continuous banks of moss turf (which over much of their extent overlie peat more than 1 m deep) and small patches of Antarctic hair grass. A large blue-eyed shag colony, brown skuas, south polar skuas and hybrids are also found. Proposed by the UK. Adopted at the ATCM IV (Santiago, 1966).
10.	Byers Peninsula redesignated as SSSI No.6
11.	Cape Shirreff redesignated as SSSI No.32, and also CEMP Site No. 2
12.	Fildes Peninsula redesignated as SSSI No.5
13.	Moe Island, South Orkney Islands
	60°44'S, 45°41'W. Approximate area: 1.3 km². A small island lying about 300 m off the south-western extremity of Signy Island. The off-lying rocks are not included in the area. Designation on the grounds that Moe Island provides a representative example of the maritime Antarctic ecosystem, including large banks of moss turf and colonies of chinstrap penguins, cape petrels and Antarctic prions. Weddell seals and fur seals also haul out on the island's beaches. Intensive scientific research on the neighbouring Signy Island may alter its local ecosystem and therefore Moe Island should be protected as a control area for future comparison. The island contains the greatest continuous expanses of Chorisodontium-Polytrichum moss turf found in Antarctica. Proposed by the UK. Adopted at the ATCM IV (Santiago, 1966).
14.	Lynch Island, South Orkney Islands
	60°39'S, 45°36'W. Approximate area: 0.1 km². A small island in Marshall Bay, off the south coast of Coronation Island. Designation on the grounds that the island supports one of the most extensive and dense stands of Antarctic hair grass known in the Antarctic Treaty Area and that it provides an outstanding example of a rare natural ecological system. Several species of moss are unusually fertile, and the soil contains a rich invertebrate fauna. Most species of Antarctic seals are common around the island. Proposed by the UK. Adopted at the ATCM IV (Santiago, 1966).
15.	Southern Powell Island and adjacent islands, South Orkney Islands
	60°43'S, 45°00'W. Approximate area: 18 km². The area includes all of Powell Island south of the latitude of the southern summit of John Peaks, together with the whole of Fredriksen Island, Michelsen Island, Christoffersen Island, Grey Island and adjacent unnamed islands. Designation on the grounds that southern Powell Island and the adjacent islands support flora and a considerable bird and mammal fauna, which is representative of the natural ecology of the South Orkney Islands, and which are rendered more important by the presence of a small, long-established breeding colony of fur seals. Proposed by the UK. Adopted at the ATCM IV (Santiago, 1966).
16.	Coppermine Peninsula, Robert Island, South Shetland Islands
	62°22'S, 59°43'W. Approximate area: 0.9 km². The area comprises all the land west of a line drawn from north to south across the peninsula 100 m west of the two shelters found on the isthmus. Designation on the grounds that Coppermine Peninsula is a biologically diverse area, supporting rich vegetation, together with a variety of terrestrial fauna, and that the ecosystem includes a rich avifauna. It has one of the largest continuous moss stands in the Antarctic. Chinstrap penguins, southern giant petrels, Wilson's storm petrels, Antarctic terns, Dominican gulls, elephant seals, Weddell seals and fur seals can be found. Proposed by Chile. Adopted at the ATCM VI (Tokyo, 1970).
17.	Litchfield Island, Arthur Harbour, Anvers Island, Palmer Archipelago
	64°46'S, 64°06'W. Approximate area: 2.7 km². A small island designated on the grounds that, together with its littoral zone, it possesses an unusually rich collection of marine and terrestrial life, is unique amongst the neighbouring islands as a breeding place for six species of native birds, and provides an outstanding example of the natural ecological system of the Antarctic Peninsula area. Litchfield Island has no agreed Management Plan. Proposed by the USA. Adopted at the ATCM VIII (Oslo, 1975).
18.	Northern Coronation Island, South Orkney Islands
	The centroid of the area is 60°33'S, 45°35'W. The area is between Conception Point, 60°31'S, 45°41'W; Wave Peak, 60°37'S, 45°36'W; and Foul Point, 60°32'S, 45°29'W. Approximate area: 88.5 km². The area lies on the central north side of Coronation Island. The entire area between the two points is included. The summits of Mt Nivea and Wave Peak and the col known as High Stile are outside the area. Ommanney Bay and the unnamed bay to the west are included within the area south of the boundary between Conception and Foul points. Designation on the grounds that it embraces areas of coastal ice-free terrain with large seabird colonies and lichen-dominated cliffs, and permanent ice rising to the Brisbane Heights plateau which provides an excellent representative area of a pristine ice environment near the northern limit of the maritime Antarctic, and that the interrelated terrestrial, ice and marine components of the area comprise an integrated example of the coastal, permanent ice, and sublittoral ecosystems typical of the maritime Antarctic environment. Proposed by the UK. Adopted at the ATCM XIII (Brussels, 1985).
19.	Lagotellerie Island, Marguerite Bay, Antarctic Peninsula
	67°53'S, 67°24'W. Approximate area: 1.2 km². The island lies about 3 km off south-western Horseshoe Island. Designation on the grounds that the island contains a relatively diverse flora and fauna typical of the southern Antarctic Peninsula. Of particular interest is the abundance of the only two Antarctic flowering plants, Antarctic hair grass and Antarctic pearlwort, which form stands up to 10 m². These are amongst the largest stands known south of the South Shetland Islands, being only 90 km north of their southern limit. In the area both plants flower profusely and the seeds have a greater viability than those in the South Orkney and South Shetland islands. Numerous mosses and lichens also form well-developed communities on the island and a few of the mosses are fertile, a rare phenomenon in most Antarctic localities. The invertebrate fauna is rich and the island is one of the southernmost sites for the midge Belgica antarctica. The shallow loamy soil developed beneath the plant swards and its associated invertebrate fauna and microbiota are probably unique at this latitude. There is also a colony of about 1000 Adélie penguins and one of the southernmost colonies of blue-eyed shags, and numerous pairs of brown and south polar skuas breed on the island. Proposed by the UK. Adopted at the ATCM XIII (Brussels, 1985).
20.	'New College Valley', Caughley Beach, Cape Bird, Ross Island
	77°13'S, 166°24'E. Approximate area: 0.1 km². The area consists of the ice-free terrain lying between the cliff top above Caughley Beach and about 100 m east of the Mt Bird ice cap, and between a line south of the main stream bed of 'Keble Valley' and the south ridge of 'New College Valley'. It is surrounded on three sides by SSSI No.10. Designation on the grounds that the area contains some of the most luxuriant stands of vegetation (algae, mosses, and lichens) and associated microflora and microfauna in the Ross Sea sector of Antarctica; that because of the susceptibility of the cryptogamic vegetation to damage from trampling, the designation of the area provides protection for its biota; and that the area should serve as a conservation reserve representative of the adjacent SSSI No. 10. Proposed by New Zealand. Adopted at the ATCM XIII (Brussels, 1985).
21.	Avian Island, off southern coast of Adelaide Island, Antarctic Peninsula
	67°46'S, 68°53'W. Approximate area: 0.8 km². The island lies 0.25 km south of the south-west tip of Adelaide Island. The area consists of the island together with its littoral zone. Designation on the grounds that it is unique in the Antarctic Peninsula region for its abundance and diversity of breeding seabirds, the most important of which are Adélie penguins, blue-eyed shags, southern giant petrels, Dominican gulls, skuas, and Wilson's storm petrels. Weddell seals breed and fur seals come ashore. Proposed by the UK. Adopted at the ATCM XVI (Bonn, 1991).
22.	'Cryptogam Ridge', Mount Melbourne, Victoria Land
	74°21'S, 164°42'E. Approximate area: 0.7 km². The area includes most of 'Cryptogam Ridge' on the southern rim of the main summit crater and lies within SSSI No. 24. Designation on the grounds that the geothermal ground supports a unique community of bryophytes, algae, and microbiota, including the only known occurrence in the Antarctic of the moss Campylopus pyriformis and the very rare continental occurrence of the liverwort Cephaloziella exiliflora. The site is comparable with the two other known high-altitude, geothermally-influenced ice-free areas near the summits of Mount Erebus and 'Mount Rittman'. Proposed by New Zealand. Adopted at the ATCM XVI (Bonn, 1991).
23.	Forlidas Pond and Davis Valley ponds, Dufek Massif
	Forlidas Pond 82°27'S 51°21'W, Davis Valley ponds 82°28'S 51°08'W. Approximate area: 9.8 km². Forlidas Pond is near the east end of the Dufek Massif in a small unnamed dry valley about 1 km east of the northern edge of Forlidas Ridge and about 1 km north-west of Davis Valley. The area is in two parts. A: within 500 m of the centre of Forlidas Pond, and B: within 500 m radius of several meltwater ponds at the ice margin along the northern edge of Davis Valley. Designation on the grounds that the area contains some of the most southerly freshwater ponds known in Antarctica that contain plant life which would be threatened by possible contamination by human activity. SPA No.23 lies within SRA No.1. Proposed by the USA. Adopted at the ATCM XVI (Bonn, 1991).
24.	'Pointe-Géologie Archipelego', Terre Adélie
	The centroid of the area is 66°40'S 140°02'E. Limits of area are 66°39'30"S to 66°40'30"S, 140°00'E to 140°02'E. Approximate area: 2 km². Includes Jean Rostand, Alexis Carrel, Lamarck and Claude Bernard islands, Bon Docteur Nunatak and the emperor penguin colony on adjacent sea-ice. Designation on the grounds that it is a representative area of considerable biological, geological, and aesthetic value; that it contains a high diversity of flora and fauna and is an important area for scientific research; and that long-term research programmes on bird colonies and geology have been conducted in the area since 1952. Proposed by France. Adopted at the ATCM XIX (Seoul, 1995).
25.	Cape Evans, Ross Island
	77°38'S, 166°24'E. Approximate area: 0.048 km². Located on the north western coast of Cape Evans, adjacent to Home Beach and centred on Scott's Terra Nova hut. Designation on the grounds that the Cape Evans site is one of the principal sites of the Heroic Age of Antarctic exploration, that it contains historic structures and relics pertaining to this era, that some of the earliest advances in Antarctic science are associated with the Terra Nova Expedition, and that as such the site has considerable historical, cultural and scientific significance. Proposed by New Zealand. Adopted at the ATCM XXI (Christchurch, 1997).
26.	Lewis Bay, Mount Erebus, Ross Island
	167°28'E, 77°25'S. Approximate area: 15.2 km². The site encompasses the crash zone centered on 167°28'E, 77°25'S and the surrounding glacial ice 2 km above and to either side of this position, extends as a 4 km wide 'rectangle'down to the sea, and includes the airspace above this region to an altitude of 1000 m with the exception of a 200m wide air access corridor along the coastline. Designated on the grounds that it is the site of an Air New Zealand DC-10 aircraft crash, 28 November 1979, into the northern slope of Mount Erebus, Ross Island, Antarctica. All two hundred and fifty seven people on board the aircraft lost their lives in the tragedy. In spite of the courageous action of personnel from Scott Base (New Zealand) and McMurdo Station (USA), the bodies of some of those that died could not be recovered. The site of the tragedy was originally designated a tomb to be "left in peace". The stainless steel cross memorial, approximately 3 km from the site, is not part of the SPA, but is an HSM (No 73). Proposed by New Zealand. Adopted at the ATCM XXI (Christchurch, 1997).