Rachael Alderman (Department of Primary Industries, Parks, Water and Environment, Hobart, Tasmania, Australia) and Alistair Hobday have published in the journal Deep Sea Research Part II: Topical Studies in Oceanography on using an insecticide to combat avian pox in the Shy Albatross Thalassarche cauta. Survival of sprayed chicks was significantly higher than of those in control areas.

The paper’s abstract follows:

“Conservation of marine species typically focuses on monitoring and mitigating demonstrated stressors where possible. Evidence is accumulating that some species will be negatively affected in the future by climate change and that reduction of existing stressors may not be sufficient to offset these impacts. Recent work suggests the shy albatross (Thalassarche cauta) will be adversely affected by projected changes in environmental conditions under plausible climate change scenarios. Furthermore, modelling shows that elimination of the principal present-day threat to albatrosses, fisheries bycatch, an achievable and critical priority, may not be sufficient to reverse projected population declines due to climate impacts, which cannot be directly eliminated. Here, a case study is presented in which a range of intervention options, in preparation for predicted climate change impacts, are identified and evaluated. A suite of 24 plausible climate adaptation options is first assessed using a semi-quantitative cost–benefit–risk tool, leading to a relative ranking of actions. Of these options, increasing chick survival via reduction of disease prevalence through control of vectors, was selected for field trials. Avian insecticide was applied to chicks’ mid-way through their development and the effect on subsequent survival was evaluated. Survival of treated chicks after six weeks was significantly higher (92.7%) than those in control areas (82.1%). This approach shows that options to enhance albatross populations exist and we argue that testing interventions prior to serious impacts can formalise institutional processes and allow refinement of actions that offer some chance of mitigating the impacts of climate change on iconic marine species.”

Shy Albatrosses on Albatross Island, photograph by Matthew Newton

Reference:

Alderman, R. & Hobday, A.J. 2017. Developing a climate adaptation strategy for vulnerable seabirds based on prioritisation of intervention options. Deep Sea Research Part II: Topical Studies in Oceanography 140: 290-297.

John Cooper, ACAP Information Officer, 14 August 2017

Lindsay Young of Pacific Rim Conservation has reported on a successful operation to remove a piece of ingested plastic and pieces of a red balloon from a Laysan Albatross Phoebastria immutabilis chick.  The bird was being hand-reared at the James Campbell National Wildlife Reserve on the Hawaiian island of Oahu as part of an attempt to create a new colony not subject to predicted sea-level rise.

The translocated chick, which was underweight when collected was failing to thrive and gain mass, but after removal of the foreign items went on to fledge successfully (although still underweight); read her illustrated account here.  A video clip taken during an endoscopy that followed an ultrasound scan of the albatross reveals the offending items.

A hand-reared Laysan Albatross chick gets a meal, photograph by Greg Koob, USFWS

Meanwhile, over in Australia, a balloon and a plastic spoon have been removed from the stomach of a Southern Giant Petrel Macronectes giganteus in a similar operation (click here).  In both cases the ballons were coloured red, suggesting a preference for items of that colour -as has been suggested for North Pacific albatrosses swallowing cigarette lighters.  Seems the lyrics of the "Red Balloon" song by Charli XCX need a rewrite:

"If you got troubles, let 'em go
Let 'em soar so high, high into the sky
Just like a red balloon

Ah ooh!
Don't let your worries get to you
Let 'em float on by, high into the sky
Just like a red balloon"

(click here).

Reference:

Cooper, J. Auman, H.J. & Klavitter, J. 2004. Do the albatrosses of Midway Atoll select cigarette lighters by color? Pacific Seabirds 31: 2-4.

John Cooper, ACAP Information Officer, 11 August 2017

Sebastian Jiménez (Laboratorio de Recursos Pelágicos, Dirección Nacional de Recursos Acuáticos, Montevideo, Uruguay) and colleagues have published in the journal Marine Biology on the importance of artificial food sources provided by fisheries to eight species of albatrosses and petrels.

The paper’s abstract follows:

“Although fisheries discards are recognized as a key food source for many seabirds, there have been few thorough assessments of their importance relative to natural prey, and of their influence on the trophic structure of pelagic seabird communities during the non-breeding period. Competition for resources in Procellariiformes appears to be reduced mainly by avoiding spatial overlap, which is supposed to influence diet composition. However, artificial food sources provided by fisheries might relax niche partitioning, increasing trophic niche overlap. Using bycaught birds from pelagic longline fisheries, we combined the conventional diet and stable isotope analyses to assess the importance of fishing discards in the diet of eight species of Procellariiformes. Both methods revealed the high contribution of trawl discards to the non-breeding diet of three neritic species and a moderate contribution in several other species; discards from pelagic and demersal longline fisheries were considerably less important. There was a clear contrast in diets of neritic vs. oceanic species, which are closely related taxonomically, but segregate at sea. Niche partitioning was less clear among neritic species. They showed an unexpectedly high level of diet overlap, presumably related to the large volume of trawl discards available. This is the first study combining the conventional diet and stable isotope analyses to quantify the importance of fishery discards for a community of non-breeding seabirds, and demonstrates how the super-abundance of supplementary food generates high levels of overlap in diets and allows the coexistence of species.”

Southern Royal Albatross, photograph by Barry Baker

With thanks to Sebastian Jiménez.

Reference:

Jiménez, S., Xavier, J.C., Domingo, A., Brazeiro, A., Defeo, O., Viera, M., Lorenzo, M.I. & Phillips, R.A. 2017. Inter-specific niche partitioning and overlap in albatrosses and petrels: dietary divergence and the role of fishing discards. Marine Biology doi:10.1007/s00227-017-3205-y plus supplementary information.

John Cooper, ACAP Information Officer, 10 August 2017

As previously reported in ACAP Latest News, ACAP will host a workshop on gadfly Pterodroma and other small burrowing petrels at the time of the Agreement’s meetings in Wellington, New Zealand next month. The Ninth Meeting of ACAP’s Advisory Committee (AC9) held in La Serena, Chile in May last year agreed to host the workshop with the main objective of advancing understanding about the best approaches for international cooperation in the conservation of the species to be considered.

Critically Endangered Galapagos Petrel Pterodroma phaeopygia, photograph by Eric Vanderwerf

An introduction to the workshop, along with its Terms of Reference, is now available online as AC10 Doc 14. Some suggestions for a way forward are also given as “starters” for the workshop’s discussions.

BirdLife International has prepared a summary document “Status, trends and conservation management needs of the Pterodroma and Pseudobulweria groups” along with an annexed spreadsheet of key data for each species that will be distributed in advance of the workshop. Following its presentation and discussion, the workshop may break into sub-groups to further its work.  A report of the meeting will be prepared for ultimate consideration by the next session of the ACAP Meeting of Parties, due to be held in 2018.

John Cooper, ACAP Information Officer, 09 August 2017