Scientists describe an almost complete albatross skull from the pliocene epoch

JULY 17, 2019

by Senckenberg Research Institute and Natural History Museum

Senckenberg ornithologist Gerald Mayr, in conjunction with his colleague Alan Tennyson of the Te Papa Museum in New Zealand, describe a previously unknown, extinct albatross species from the Pliocene. The bird, which lived about 3 million years ago, only reached approximately 90 percent of the size of the smallest modern albatrosses. However, the fossil's most remarkable trait is the unusually narrow beak, which suggests that the new species mainly fed on fish. The diet of modern albatrosses, by contrast, is dominated by squid. The fossil discovery thus indicates a higher diversity in the feeding ecology of extinct albatrosses and raises the question why the fish-eating forms ultimately went extinct. The study is published today in the scientific journal Ibis.

Extant albatrosses are known for their considerable size: the largest species reach a wingspan of more than 3 meters. However, while living albatrosses are among the most iconic pelagic birds, little is known about the evolutionary history of these characteristic flyers, and fossils are extremely rare.

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Protecting Midway’s Seabirds

 19 FEB 2019

The US Fish and Wildlife Service has released the final Environmental Assessment for the Midway Seabird Protection Project.

Warning: Graphic photographs. Viewer Discretion is Advised.

In 2015, volunteers at Midway Atoll made a gruesome discovery. In the midst of the largest albatross colony in the world, birds were being eaten alive by mice as they sat on their nests. Over the course of a few years, mice attacks have increased from just a few incidents to hundreds of widespread attacks on albatross that result in injury, nest abandonment and death.

In order to protect this globally important colony of seabirds, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has finalized the Midway Seabird Protection Plan to remove the predatory invasive house mouse from Midway Atoll. The Final Environmental Assessment and Finding of No Significant Impact associated with the project are available to the public.

As a part of the planning process, the Service consulted with the public, other federal and conservation agencies, and non-governmental and private organizations. All public comments and information received during the public comment period were considered in the development of the environmental assessment. The environmental assessment, associated documents and permits, and project details are available at: https://www.fws.gov/refuge/Midway_Atoll

Within Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument, Midway Atoll National Wildlife Refuge and Battle of Midway National Memorial supports over three million birds from 30 different species. Nearly 40 percent of all Black-footed albatross and 70 percent of all Laysan albatross in the world rely on the approximately 1500 acres of islands that comprise the remote atoll. Seabirds face a myriad of threats – from fishery interactions and marine debris to invasive species and shrinking habitat. Safe places like Midway Atoll, where seabirds can rest and raise their young, are critical for their ability to survive into the future.

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Industrial fishing ushers the albatross closer to extinction, say researchers

Satellite data suggests protection measures are being ignored as huge fishing lines snare endangered seabirds

Karen McVeigh

Thu 31 Jan 2019 11.21 GMT

Industrial fishing vessels that accidentally kill tens of thousands of albatrosses each year routinely ignore regulations designed to save the birds from extinction, according to research.

Using satellite data, investigators found that vessels employing longline fishing techniques showed a “low level of compliance” with measures to reduce albatross deaths.

Longliners target tuna and other species, but their fishing lines – which can be up to 80 miles long – also unintentionally trap, drown and harm seabirds, as well as turtles, dolphins and other marine life, a process known as “bycatch”.

Modern fishing methods have been identified as a major danger to plummeting albatross populations, threatening to drive almost three-quarters of all species to extinction, said Birdlife International, who undertook the research in conjunction with Global Fishing Watch.

Under a red list compiled by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, 15 out of 22 albatross species are considered endangered.

The study, which drew on satellite data to map the behaviour of longliners in the Indian, Atlantic and western central Pacific ocean, revealed that just 15% of the vessels used a measure known as “night-setting”, which involves putting lines down at night. The technique is one of three mitigation measures designed to protect albatrosses, which only feed during the day.

The findings offered a stark contrast with reports given by countries to fisheries watchdogs that suggested night-setting was used by between 29% and 85% of fleets.

“The results are very disappointing,” said Stephanie Winnard, a biologist with the albatross task force, a specialist unit set up by Birdlife International and the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds. “By this stage you would expect a lot more vessels to be using night setting.”

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Help to save the endangered albatross by donating used Christmas stamps to RSPB Frampton Marsh

GEMMA GADD Email Published: 16:30 Updated: 16:43 Tuesday 11 December 2018

People from Boston borough are being asked to help save one of the world’s largest birds, the albatross, from extinction - by donating used stamps from their Christmas cards. RSPB Frampton Marsh has issued the appeal, and is asking for the postage stamps to be dropped off at their visitor centre.

The sea birds are at threat of extinction, with 100,000 dying each year due to fishing methods which see the birds caught in the lines. Since albatrosses are very slow breeders, producing only one chick every two years, this is driving them to extinction. Chris Andrews, visitor experience manager for the reserve, said: “This is a chance for local people to do something simple yet practical to help a wonderful creature like the albatross and save them from extinction.”

Donated stamps will be sold on the international market to raise money. This will then be used to fit various devices to the fishing boats that vastly reduce the chances of albatrosses being caught. The campaign has already raised enough money to place trained people on fishing boats. They then advise the skippers on wildlife friendly fishing procedures. If you would like to help, bring your used stamps to the RSPB nature reserve of Frampton Marsh, just south of Boston. Stamp collections are also gratefully received. The reserve is open every day (except Christmas Day) from 9.30am to 4pm. There is a heated visitor centre with snacks, hot and cold drinks, and views over the reserve.

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Saving the albatross: 'The war is against plastic and they are casualties on the frontline'

Following his shocking photographs of dead albatross chicks and the diet of plastic that killed them, Chris Jordan’s new film is a call to action to repair our broken relationship with planet Earth

Anna Turns

Mon 12 Mar 2018 06.00 GMT

We are living in a plastic age and the solutions may seem glaringly obvious, so why aren’t all 7.6 billion of us already doing things differently? Shocking statistics don’t guarantee effective change. So what’s the alternative? American photographer and filmmaker Chris Jordan believes the focus should be on forcing people to have a stronger emotional engagement with the problems plastic causes. His famous photographs of dead albatross chicks and the colourful plastic they have ingested serve as a blunt reminder that the planet is in a state of emergency.

While making his feature-length film Albatross, Jordan considered Picasso’s approach: “The role of the artist is to respect you, help you connect more deeply, and then leave it up to you to decide how to behave.”

Most nature documentaries devote their final few minutes to hopeful solutions, but Jordan avoids this. He simply shines a light on the crisis facing the huge colonies of Laysan albatrosses on the remote Pacific island of Midway. “There’s something so archetypal about these legendary birds and seeing bright colours of ocean plastic against dead sterility is a powerful symbol for our human culture right now. We’re in a state of emotional bankruptcy,” says Jordan.

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Wisdom, the World’s Oldest Known Wild Bird, Successfully Hatches Another Chick!

22 FEB 2018

ISLAND CONSERVATION

ISLAND NEWS, NEWS

Wisdom, known the world around as the oldest wild bird sill producing offspring, returned to Midway Atoll in early 2018 and has now successful hatched another chick.

At 67, Wisdom, the world’s oldest known breeding bird in the wild, is a mother once more! On February 6th, approximately two months after Wisdom began incubating her egg, Wisdom and her mate Akeakamai welcomed their newest chick to Midway Atoll.

Midway Atoll National Wildlife Refuge and Battle of Midway National Memorialwithin Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument is a special place for over three million seabirds – they return to Midway Atoll each year to rest, mate, lay eggs, and raise their chicks.

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Albatross populations in decline from fishing and environmental change

The populations of wandering, black-browed and grey-headed albatrosses have halved over the last 35 years on sub-antarctic Bird Island according to a new study published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

The research, led by scientists at British Antarctic Study (BAS), attributes this decline to environmental change, and to deaths in longline and trawl fisheries (known as bycatch).

Albatrosses are the world's most threatened family of birds. There are 22 species; according to the IUCN Red List, 17 of these are 'Threatened with extinction' and the remaining five are considered to be 'Near-threatened'. BAS scientists at Bird Island have been monitoring the populations since 1972.

By analysing the breeding histories of more than 36,000 individually ringed albatrosses, researchers have found decreases in the survival rates of both adults and juveniles, causing serious declines in population growth rates with long-lasting effects.

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DNA tests on albatross excrement reveal secret diet of top predator

Date:  October 18, 2017

Source:  University of Tasmania - Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies

Summary:

A study that used DNA tests to analyse the scats of one of the world's most numerous albatrosses has revealed surprising results about the top predator's diet. DNA analysis of 1460 scats from breeding sites around the Southern Ocean has shown that the diet of black-browed albatrosses contains a much higher proportion of jellyfish than previously thought.

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Engineers identify key to albatross' marathon flight

Flying in shallow arcs helps birds stay aloft with less effort

Date:  October 11, 2017

Source:  Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Summary:

Engineers have developed a new model to simulate dynamic soaring, and have used it to identify the optimal flight pattern that an albatross should take in order to harvest the most wind and energy. They found that as an albatross banks or turns to dive down and soar up, it should do so in shallow arcs, keeping almost to a straight, forward trajectory.

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Albatross feces show diet of fishery discards

New, non-intrusive way to assess seabird diet could help improve fisheries management and monitor marine biodiversity

Date:  October 4, 2017

Source:  Frontiers

Summary:

The first-ever analysis of fish DNA in albatross scat indicates a high level of interaction between seabirds and commercial fisheries. This non-invasive method could be used to assess whether fisheries are complying with discard policies. Extending the analysis to other marine predators could help monitor marine biodiversity and broader marine ecosystem changes.

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World's Oldest Wild Breeding Bird Is Expecting Her 41st Chick

By Laura Geggel, Senior Writer | December 12, 2016 03:07pm ET

 

Forget about the stork — it's the albatross that should be in charge of baby delivery. That's because the world's oldest wild breeding bird mother, a 66-year-old albatross named Wisdom, is incubating another egg, likely her 41st one, experts say.

Wisdom's new chick is unexpected; many albatrosses don't breed for two consecutive years, and Wisdom had a chick last year. Rather, most lay an egg one year and then take a break the next, instead investing their time and energy into molting their feathers, said researchers at the Midway Atoll National Wildlife Refuge and Battle of Midway National Memorial, located about 1,400 miles (2,250 kilometers) northwest of Hawaii.

Having healthy feathers is important because albatrosses spend almost 90 percent of their time flying, often covering thousands of miles as they search for food in the north Pacific Ocean, the researchers said.



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Albatrosses fish for squid using luminous organisms in the sea, revolutionary monitoring device reveals

Tag can detect an array of different actions by animals in minute detail such as a ‘double take’ when a penguin sees a squid or how an unhappy elephant walks

Ian Johnston at the British Science Festival, Swansea 

Thursday 8 September 2016

Scientists attached GPS trackers to a group of 16 albatrosses in the Indian Ocean. They recorded the birds flying at speeds of up to 67mph using a ‘dynamic soaring’ technique, which enables them to fly thousands of miles depending on the wind David Osborn/Alamy

Albatrosses fish for squid by spending hours paddling around in circles to stir up bioluminescent organisms on the surface of the sea, a revolutionary new tag that even can sense animals’ emotions has discovered.

About 100 different species – from penguins to cheetahs to humans – have been tagged with the device, which monitors a number of factors such as speed, orientation, temperature, light and pressure.

It is so sensitive that the inventors describe the information it can produce as a “daily diary” of an animal’s life.

For example, it can detect when a penguin sitting down on its nest gets up, takes a few steps in its trademark waddle, shakes itself, dives into the water, where it swims and even the moment it catches a squid.

This can be used to work out whether a particular penguin population is struggling to find enough food to cover the energy expended when fishing.

The tags, which cost about £400, have also been able to detect a different walking style used by elephants when they are happy or sad. 

It gives such a detailed picture of the way animals behave it could even be used to predict what they are likely to do next.

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Albatross poo could be key to saving bird

12:13pm July 14, 2016

People usually do their best to avoid bird poo but a group of researchers has developed a fascination with the faeces of albatross to try and help save the threatened seabird species.

Julie McInnes is leading a study at Hobart's Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies, analysing the bird's diet to try and develop conservation and management strategies.

"There are very few sites where we can look at long term studies and see if the albatross diet is changing ... shy albatross in Tasmania stay around their colony during winter so we have access to the scats year-round and can compare winter and breeding season diets," Ms McInnes said.

Source… 

MPI to prosecute over fishing-related albatross deaths

Thursday, 14 July 2016, 4:35 pm Press Release: Ministry For Primary Industries

MPI to prosecute over fishing-related albatross deaths – new rules to be put in place

14 July 2016

The Ministry for Primary Industries is prosecuting a commercial fisherman in relation to the deaths of 38 albatrosses and is moving to put in place additional measures to help prevent further seabird deaths.

The charges relate to an incident off the West Coast in which 38 albatrosses died when a commercial fisherman fishing for Southern Bluefin Tuna allegedly failed to use a tori line - a mandatory mitigation device designed to scare birds away from baited hooks.

The skipper faces a maximum fine of $100,000 in relation to an offence under the Fisheries (Commercial Fishing) Regulations and forfeiture of the vessel used in the operation.

MPI Acting Director Fisheries Management, Steve Halley, says the decision to prosecute sends a clear message that the rules need to be followed.

“MPI works regularly with commercial fishers to reiterate the importance of bird mitigation and the need to comply with regulations designed to prevent seabird bycatch.

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Rare sighting of legendary albatross off Maryland coast

Rachael Pacella, DelmarvaNow2:06 p.m. EDT August 6, 2015

The last verified sighting was in 2009 and before that 1975, with a handful of unconfirmed sightings in between.

The albatross is the most romanticized and least seen bird along Maryland’s coast.

The legends are foreboding. The birds are perceived as the souls of lost sailors. Spotting one means a storm is coming and killing one, even accidentally, is bad luck.

But July 15 when one flew by Capt. Monty Hawkins’ boat 20 miles out in the Atlantic, it didn’t bring any ill. It brought excitement.

“I knew I’d seen something vastly different,” he said.

Hawkins sent a message to birder Mark Hoffman and was able to identify the bird as a yellow-nosed  rare, an endangered albatross species with a wing span of 6 1/2 feet and a life span of 30 years, according to the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds.

Seeing an albatross off Maryland is very rare, Hoffman said.

“In the North Atlantic it’s very exciting. There are only two confirmed records in the state,” he said.

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Albatross Spotted near Reykjavík

BY EMILÍA S. ÓLAFSDÓTTIR KAABER

Last week a tourist on a whale-watching trip in Faxaflói, just outside Reykjavík, was attempting to photograph a humpback whale when a bird interrupted the shot.

Upon further inspection, the bird was discovered to be an albatross, and likely an Atlantic yellow-nosed albatross, a rare sight so far north.

Bird-watching enthusiast Mike King shared the photo, taken by his nephew Jared Mein, on Twitter, where it was noticed by Birding Iceland.

“Albatrosses are rarely found in the Atlantic region of the northern hemisphere. The species that live in the Atlantic are all native to the southern hemisphere, and some are known to go into the northern hemisphere of the Pacific Ocean. So this is a bird far outside of its normal territory,” ornithologist Gunnar Þór Hallgrímsson told RÚV.

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Argentina to stop albatross deaths

Posted on: 14 Sep 2014

A major trawl fishery in Argentina has agreed to start using devices to scare birds away from long-line fishing equipment.

The widely-used equipment has been causing the accidental deaths of thousands of individuals of species such as the globally Near-Threatened Black-browed Albatross. This is great news for seabirds and the Albatross Task Force, who have successfully proven that bird-scaring lines would almost eliminate seabird mortality in the fishery.

The formal decision will positively affect the fate of thousands of albatrosses every year, and was announced by the Argentinean delegates at an international meeting of the Agreement on the Conservation of Albatross and Petrels (ACAP) in Uruguay. The resolution received unanimous approval by the Federal Fisheries Council, so over the next six months fishermen on the industrial vessels of the Argentinean factory trawl fleet will be casting bird-scaring lines as well as fishing nets off the back of their boats. If needed, they will refine the bird-scaring line designs to minimise any operational concerns for the crew before the measures become obligatory in the fishery.

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$200 to reduce albatross deaths by 95%

Posted by: Kevin Heath / 18 hours ago

A $200 device that can be fitted to trawlers has been demonstrated to reduce albatross by-catch deaths by 95% and scientists are now calling for the devices to be made mandatory. The bird scarring lines also reduce by-catch deaths of other birds by between 73% and 95% during the winter months.

A research paper published in Animal Conservation show how successful a simple bird-scaring line attached to trawlers can be to prevent birds from becoming entangled in nets and cables. The study used data collected from trawl fisheries in the South African deep-water hake trawl fishery.

In 2004, 9300 birds died in the fishery including 7,200 albatrosses. The researchers then studied the by-catch of trawlers fitted with the single deterrent of bird-scaring lines during the years 2006 – 2010. If the fitting of bird-scarring lines were mandatory the research estimated that 990 sea birds would have been killed with 83 albatrosses killed.

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BIRD RESCUE: Hitchhiker albatross returns to sea

By TED SHORACK

The Daily Astorian | 0 comments

Applause and cheers went all around Saturday morning when a rehabilitated albatross hopped off the bow of the new pilot boat, Astoria, and soared above the Pacific Ocean once again.

Nine people were aboard the newly christened boat and watched the female Laysan albatross timidly test the wind with its wings before finally deciding to take flight.

The albatross was discovered in late February on a barge that landed in Rainier, having hitched a ride somewhere between Hawaii and the upriver port. The Wildlife Center of the North Coast was called and discovered the albatross had a band on its right leg that indicated it originated from Guadalupe Island off the coast of Baja California, Mexico.

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How the unflappable albatross can travel 10,000 miles in a single journey

Scientists believe they have finally worked out how the mighty albatross – a seabird capable of travelling 10,000 miles in a single journey and circumnavigating the globe in 46 days – manages to fly without expending almost any energy.

People have long wondered how this master of the skies manages to stay aloft for long periods without flapping its enormous wings, which can reach up to 3.5 metres across.

Various theories were developed but researchers now believe they have cracked the problem after attaching highly sensitive GPS trackers to a group of 16 wandering albatross, one of the largest species, in the Indian Ocean.

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