285 INTRODUCTION The spoed shag (Stictocarbo punctatus) is endemic to New Zealand and has a total population of up to 30,000 breeding pairs. Spoed shags are found mainly around the South I, with only small scaered colonies around the North I, and (treating all Wellington Harbour colonies as one population) only 2 in the Wellington region (Taylor 2000; Gill et al. 2010). It has been suggested that North I populations are declining (e.g., Taylor 2000; Cameron et al. 2007), but there are few counts available. Taylor (2000) recommended Matiu/Somes I (41.249 S, 174.853 E), in Wellington Harbour, as an ideal site for long term monitoring of this species. The population of spoed shags at Matiu/ Somes I has been documented since 1972 when Kendrick (1973) noted 7 nests at the site. This Notornis, 2013, Vol. 60: 285-289 0029-4470 © The Ornithological Society of New Zealand, Inc. Received 28 Nov 2012; accepted 27 Sep 2013 *Correspondence: Susan.Waugh@tepapa.govt.nz Numbers of spotted shags (Stictocarbo punctatus) at breeding sites in Wellington Harbour, 2002 – 2012 SUSAN WAUGH* ALAN TENNYSON Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa, PO Box 467, Wellington 6011, New Zealand ROD ORANGE Kilmister Ave, Thorndon, Wellington 6011, New Zealand STEVEN SHARP 6 Espin Cres, Karori, Wellington 6012, New Zealand REG COTTER 1 Bolton Street, Petone, Lower Hu 5046, New Zealand ROS BATCHELER DEREK BATCHELER 126 Homebush Road, Khandallah, Wellington 6035, New Zealand Abstract We conducted counts of spoed shags (Stictocarbo punctatus) at Matiu/Somes and Mokopuna islands in Wellington Harbour quarterly during the period from 2002-05 and sporadically at these sites and at Makaro/Ward Island during 2007 -12. This population is important as it is one of the few North Island breeding areas, and one of only 2 in the Wellington region. Shag numbers appear to have been stable or possibly declining during this period, with fluctuations between both months and years. An average of 210 individuals was noted during 12 comprehensive counts, with a maximum of 354 spoed shags in 2004. Breeding occurred during late winter and spring in 2010 and 2012. We recommend ongoing monitoring of this population as an important population at a New Zealand level, which is accessible and easily counted from a boat. Waugh, S.; Tennyson, A.; Orange, R.; Sharp, S.; Coer, R.; Batcheler, R.; Batcheler, D. 2013. Numbers of spoed shags (Stictocarbo punctatus) at breeding sites in Wellington Harbour, 2002-2012. Notornis 60 (4): 285-289. Keywords spoed shag; Stictocarbo punctatus; population survey; Wellington Harbour; breeding colonies