The Benguela Current Large Marine Ecosystem (BCLME) in the southeast Atlantic Ocean is one of the world's four major eastern boundary currents, which undergo intense upwelling of cool, nutrient-rich waters that support high phytoplankton biomasses and abundant forage fish resources. The forage fishes, in turn, are fed upon by numerous predators, including seabirds. The BCLME ranges from approximately Benguela in southern Angola to Algoa Bay in southern South Africa, being bounded in the north and east by the warm Angola and Agulhas currents, respectively.
Namibia's coastline is home to a wide diversity of wildlife, with many endemic seabird species. Seabirds are an integral element of biodiversity and, being top predators and visible, serve as key indicators of the state and health of the marine ecosystem. The Namibian Islands' Marine Protected Area (NIMPA) was proclaimed in 2009, stretching 400 km along the southern Namibian coast, covering almost 10,000 km2, with a key objective to protect the breeding sites and main foraging areas of seabirds along Namibia’s coast. Unfortunately, a management plan has not yet been completed or implemented, there is a lack of human capacity and insufficient funding in the marine conservation sector in Namibia, so the NIMPA is largely ineffective and not fulfilling its mission.
The Namibian crash of sardine and anchovy stocks more than five decades ago showed the shift of a productive upwelling ecosystem to a less efficient system dominated by poor-value species like the bearded goby. This has contributed to the dramatic, ongoing decline in the populations of the African Penguin (>50% since the 1970s), the Cape Gannet (90% since the 1970s), the Bank- and Cape Cormorants (>50% in the last three decades). The main threats facing seabirds in Namibia include a lack of good quality food availability, marine oil pollution and habitat loss. Diseases, such as highly pathogenic Avian Influenza which killed over 500 adult African Penguins in 2019, also pose a threat.
