Just over fifty years ago, biologists from Point Blue Conservation Science (known then as Point Reyes Bird Observatory) landed on the Farallon Islands for the first time. We have maintained a continuous presence on the islands ever since: 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.
Referred to by some as “California’s Galapagos,” the Farallones host the largest seabird breeding colony in the contiguous United States and 25% percent of California’s breeding seabirds (more than 300,000 individuals of 13 species). Over the last 40 years, the USFWS has strived to restore the Farallones by removing invasive plants and animals that have negatively impacted the island ecosystem.
Today, the invasive house mouse is the last invasive vertebrate remaining on the Farallones. The presence of invasive house mice is negatively impacting the Ashy Storm-petrel, other seabirds, Burrowing Owls, Farallon arboreal salamanders, Farallon camel crickets, and the islands’ vegetation. Threats to the rare and threatened Ashy Storm-petrel’s declining population are of particular concern.
After fifteen years of careful study and planning, the US Fish and Wildlife Service, our partners in managing the islands, have proposed the eradication of the invasive house mouse from the Farallon Islands. Invasive rodent removals have been successfully completed on nearly 700 islands worldwide. Land managers have successfully eradicated house mice from more than 60 islands worldwide. Nearly all of these successful projects utilized techniques like those proposed for the South Farallon Islands house mouse eradication.
The Farallon Islands are a world-famous local treasure. The USFWS has a unique opportunity in this moment to take a giant step forward in restoring the island’s fragile ecosystem and protecting the many species that rely on it. We applaud the USFWS for their careful, transparent process and their commitment to science-based decision making. Based on our fifty years of experience studying birds and other wildlife on the islands, we strongly support the conclusions of the Service’s EIS and hope you’ll do the same.
For more information and to take action, visit:
www.pointblue.org/farallonrest...
and
restorethefarallones.org/