Video camera count of burrow-dwelling fairy prions, sooty shearwaters, and tuatara on Takapourewa (Stephens Island), New Zealand

Video camera technology is an increasingly common tool in the study of burrow-dwelling animals. A camera used to observe the inhabitants of narrow burrows on Takapourewa (Cook Strait, New Zealand) is described. Population densities (animals per m(2)) of up to 1.1 for fairy prions (Pachyptila turtur), 0.06 for sooty shearwaters (Puffinus griseus), and 0.15 for tuatara (Sphenodon punctatus) were estimated in four different habitats. These data are similar to other estimates collected in more labour intensive studies on the island, and provide baseline information for future conservation work on Takapourewa.