This dataset pertains to chinstrap penguin breeding success at selected colonies on Signy island from 1978 to 2020. It comprises annual ground counts of occupied and incubating nests, eggs (proxy for breeding pairs), chicks hatched, and chicks expected to fledge. The GPS locations for surveyed sites are also included. From the 1996-1997 season onwards, this dataset conforms to CCAMLR data collection standards and contributes to the CCAMLR Ecosystem Monitoring Program (CEMP). Ecosystems component of BAS Polar Science for Planet Earth Programme, funded by NERC.

100 nests in designated Adelie and Chinstrap penguin colonies are marked and then regularly monitored. Data are collected on when eggs are laid in each nest, when they hatch, when eggs or chicks are lost, and when chicks become unguarded. Data exist from 1996 onwards. For Adelie penguins, 100 nests in a colony designated A41 was monitored between 1996 and 2002, from 2003 onwards 100 nests in a colony designated A39 were monitored. For Chinstrap penguins, 100 nests in a colony designated A69 were monitored between 1996 and 2015, from 2016 onwards, 100 nests in a colony designated C66 were monitored. No data were collected in the 1997-98, 1999-2000 and 2010-2011 seasons. To calculate the annual hatching date a binomial model was fitted using the proportion of nests containing one or more chicks as the response variable and the date in days after 1 Oct as the explanatory variable. This model was fitted for each species and year separately. The dose.p function in the MASS package in R was used to derive the day when 50% of nests contained one or more chicks to produce the mean hatching date for each species-year combination. Mean laying dates were back-calculated from the mean hatching dates by subtracting the average incubation periods for each species (35 days for Adelies and 36.4 days for chinstraps, which are relatively constant between years). This has been calculated for data from 1996 to 2016.

This dataset pertains to gentoo penguin breeding success at selected colonies on Signy island from 1978 to 2020. It comprises annual ground counts of occupied and incubating nests, eggs (proxy for breeding pairs), chicks hatched, and chicks expected to fledge. The GPS locations for surveyed sites are also included. From the 1996-1997 season onwards, this dataset conforms to CCAMLR data collection standards and contributes to the CCAMLR Ecosystem Monitoring Program (CEMP). Ecosystems component of BAS Polar Science for Planet Earth Programme, funded by NERC.

This dataset comprises the annual count of chinstrap penguins arriving to Signy Island each breeding season, from 1996 to 2020. Penguins arriving at the beach in mid to late November (the austral summer) were counted. This monitoring contributes to the CCAMLR (Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources) Ecosystem Monitoring Program (CEMP) and is part of the annual seabird Long Term Monitoring carried out by the British Antarctic Survey at Signy Island. Ecosystems component of BAS Polar Science for Planet Earth Programme, funded by NERC.

This dataset pertains to Adelie penguin breeding success at selected colonies on Signy island from 1978 to 2020. It comprises annual ground counts of occupied and incubating nests, eggs (proxy for breeding pairs), chicks hatched, and chicks expected to fledge. The GPS locations for surveyed sites are also included. From the 1996-1997 season onwards, this dataset conforms to CCAMLR data collection standards and contributes to the CCAMLR Ecosystem Monitoring Program (CEMP). Ecosystems component of BAS Polar Science for Planet Earth Programme, funded by NERC.

Beached marine debris has been monitored on Signy Island since 1991. Data collection was carried out during summer months across three sites on the island: Foca Cove, Cummings Cove and Starfish Cove. This dataset summarises the amount of beached debris from monthly surveys by mass and type, with additional descriptions available. This monitoring contributes to the CCAMLR (Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources) Marine debris program and is part of the long-term monitoring carried out by the British Antarctic Survey at Signy Island. Ecosystems component of BAS Polar Science for Planet Earth Programme, funded by NERC.

Numbers of nesting birds were manually counted from images collected by low-altitude aerial photography from multirotor Un-crewed Aerial Vehicles (UAVs). Three species were included in this study; gentoo (Pygoscelispapua) and chinstrap (Pygoscelis antarctica) penguin and South Georgia shag (Leucocarbo atriceps georgianus). Data were collected in the 2016/17 and 2017/18 field seasons.

The South Orkney Fast-Ice series (SOFI) is an annual record of the timing of formation and breakout of fast-ice in Factory Cove, Signy Island, in the South Orkney Islands on the Scotia Arc in the northern Weddell Sea, Antarctica. Fast-ice formation and break-up has been studied at the South Orkeny Islands since the early 1900s, with this dataset covering the period of 1903 to 2019. This dataset is produced by personnel from the British Antarctic Survey, in efforts to study sea-ice variability in the Southern Hemisphere. Data was collected using various methods over the reporting period, namely an offset date from Laurie Island''s fast-ice, direct observation, and with camera equipment. This is an updated version (2.0) of the dataset, that includes data from 2008 to 2019.

South Georgia shag Leucocarbo [atriceps] georgianus nest counts from two breeding colonies (North Point and Shagnasty Island) at Signy Island, South Orkney Islands from 1947-2020. Chick counts are also recorded at North Point.

Between December 2012 and March 2013, snow measurements were conducted at both Gourlay Snowfield and Tuva Glacier, Signy Island. Sites are denoted ''TX'' and ''GY'', where ''X'' and ''Y'' are numbers representing one of nine snowpits in a grid at Tuva and Gourlay respectively. Measurements include snow water equivalent and chemical properties. Snow thickness was measured during the surveys (and opportunistically following fresh snowfall events) at all 18 snow pits using an avalanche probe (average of 3 readings per sampling site). Snow density was also assessed at each site using a 1L pvc. snow tube. The thickness of the superimposed ice was measured at the beginning and at the end of the season after excavation using an ice axe. In order to calculate the proportion of the total winter accumulation that was transformed into superimposed ice by refreezing, its density was assumed to be 0.9 kg L-1. Three surveys at each of the 18 sites were conducted for biogeochemical conditions: ''top'' refers to the upper 20cm; ''mid'' refers to the rest of the snow; and ''ice'' is the basal ice (refrozen snowmelt on top of last summer''s surface). Key chemical properties determined include pH, dissolved organic carbon, total dissolved inorganic carbon, ammonium, chlorophyll and major ions. Funding was provided by the NERC grants NE/H014446/1 and NE/H014802/1.