A Sooty Albatross in flight, photograph by Stefan Schoombie

Shamiso Banda (Marine Apex Predator Research Unit, Nelson Mandela University, Gqeberha, South Africa) and colleagues have published in the open-access ICES Journal of Marine Science on interactions with fishing vessels by tracked Sooty Albatrosses and White-chinned Petrels from Marion Island.

The paper’s abstract follows:

“Bycatch risk assessments typically rely on spatial overlaps between seabirds and fishing vessels but should also consider seabirds’ position in the attraction spectrum. Investigating seabird-fishery interactions in relation to habitat use is vital for species-specific risk assessments. To address this, we studied interactions between sooty albatrosses (SA) and white-chinned petrels (WCP) with fisheries. GPS data from 20 SA and 18 WCP individuals from Marion Island were analysed alongside Automatic Identification System-derived boat locations over two breeding seasons. We calculated encounter and attraction rates and correlated them with marine habitat characteristics. SA interactions occurred in deeper, warmer waters compared to their foraging habitat when vessels were absent, with 20% of individuals encountering and only 5% being attracted to boats. In contrast, WCP interactions occurred in shallow, warm South African shelf waters, consistent with their typical foraging habitats, with 72% encountering and 56% attracted to boats. These results highlight the need for continued reinforcement of mitigation measures for WCP. Despite the low attraction rates for SA, ongoing vigilance is required due to their smaller population size, which heightens the potential impact of illegal fisheries. The comparison of species along an attraction spectrum contributes to refining risk assessments and informs species-specific conservation strategies.”

A White-chinned Petrel in flight, photograph by Kirk Zufelt

Reference:

Banda, S., Pistorius, P., Collet, J., Corbeau, A., Weimerskirch, Pajot, A., Keys, D.Z. & Orgeret, F. 2023. Gauging the threat: exposure and attraction of sooty albatrosses and white-chinned petrels to fisheries activities in the Southern Indian Ocean. ICES Journal of Marine Science doi.org/10.1093/icesjms/fsad176.

John Cooper, Emeritus Information Officer, Agreement on the Conservation of Albatrosses and Petrels, 28 November 2023

An Amsterdam Albatross in flight; photograph by Kirk Zufelt

A new paper by Karine Delord (Centre d’Etudes Biologiques de Chizé, France) and colleagues has been published in PCI Ecology. The study investigates developmental shifts in the foraging behaviour of the Amsterdam Albatross through the use of remote tracking on naïve juveniles, immatures and adults.

The paper’s abstract follows:

“The transition to independent foraging represents an important developmental stage in the life cycle of most vertebrate animals. Juveniles differ from adults in various life history traits and tend to survive less well than adults in most long-lived animals. Several hypotheses have been proposed to explain higher mortality including that of inadequate/inferior foraging skills compared to adults, young naïve individuals combining lack of experience and physical immaturity. Thus a change in behaviour, resulting in an improvement of skills acquired from growing experience, is expected to occur during a period of learning through the immaturity phase. Very few studies have investigated the ontogeny of foraging behaviour over long periods of time, particularly in long-lived pelagic seabirds, due to the difficulty of obtaining individual tracking data over several years. We investigated the foraging behaviour, through activity patterns, during the three life stages of the endangered Amsterdam albatross by using miniaturized activity loggers on naïve juveniles, immatures and adults. Naïve juveniles during their first month at sea after leaving their colony exhibited lower foraging effort (greater proportion of time spent sitting on water, longer and more numerous bouts on water, shorter and fewer flying bouts). Patterns of activity parameters in juveniles after independence suggested a progressive change of foraging performances during the first two months after fledging. We found sex differences in activity parameters according to time since departure from the colony and month of the year, consistent with the important sexual dimorphism in the Amsterdam albatross. Regardless of life stage considered, activity parameters exhibited temporal variability reflecting the modulation of foraging behaviour. This variability is discussed in light of both extrinsic (i.e. environmental conditions such as variability in food resources or in wind) and intrinsic (i.e. energetic demands linked to plumage renew during moult) factors.”

Reference:

Delord, K., Weimerskirch, H. & Barbraud, C. (2023). The challenges of independence: ontogeny of at-sea behaviour in a long-lived seabird. PCI Ecology. https://doi.org/10.1101/2021.10.23.465439

27 November 2023

A suspected case of HPAI in a Black-browed Albatross is under investigation and awaiting tests according to AWHN's table of 'suspected and confirmed HPAI events in the sub-Antarctic and Antarctica' on the SCAR website; photograph by Ian Strange

The Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research’s (SCAR) Antarctic Wildlife Health Network (AWHN) has implemented a database for High Pathogenicity Avian Influenza (HPAI) to track and document data provided to the AWHN regarding the spread of HPAI outbreaks in the sub-Antarctic and Antarctica during the Austral Summer of 2023/24.

As stated on the SCAR website, information submitted to the database will be used to:

• Monitor the movement and spread of HPAI in the sub-Antarctic and Antarctic region.
• Update the AWHN risk assessment for wildlife species and geographical regions.
• Update recommendations and guidelines for surveillance, monitoring and response to HPAI as we learn from this outbreak.
• Update the polar community on current suspected and confirmed outbreaks of HPAI and to further understand the biology and movement of this virus.
• Analyse the movement of HPAI and its impacts on wildlife colonies based on reported data.

 More information on the monitoring project can be found at the SCAR website, here, or for enquiries related to the database, please email, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

ACAP recently released an updated version of its Guidelines for working with albatrosses and petrels during the high pathogenicity avian influenza (HPAI) H5N1 panzootic, first published in July 2022. The guidelines were produced by the Agreement's High Pathogenicity H5N1 Avian Influenza Intersessional Group in response to the growing concern of avian influenza’s potential impact on ACAP-listed species. The Intersessional Group consists of thirteen experts on epidemiology, disease risk assessment and management who advise the Agreement on issues related to the ongoing H5N1 avian influenza outbreak. 

In commenting on the overall scenario and the updated guidelines, Patricia Serafini, Co-convenor of the Agreement’s Population and Conservation Status Working Group (PaCSWG) and member of the ACAP Intersessional Group on HPAI said: 

"High pathogenicity Avian Influenza (HPAI), caused by the virus H5N1, results in rapid and high mortality in infected wildlife groups. Researchers and authorities have been engaged in studying and understanding the impacts of this ongoing panzootic since the first ACAP guidelines on HPAI were released in 2022, and a lot of new information has been released. Migratory bird species arriving to the Southern Ocean (mostly between September and November) could transmit HPAI to the region, coinciding with the arrival of breeding seabirds, including ACAP species. Furthermore, it is possible that the virus could survive in the environment beyond the austral summer. Considering the present global panzootic scenario and the new information available, experts from several countries have been engaged together in an ACAP intersessional group to update and provide managers and ACAP Parties with the most up-to-date guidance for surveillance, monitoring, and response for HPAI outbreaks that might occur this season."

Further information on Avian Flu, including the updated guidelines, can be found at the ACAP website under Resources>Disease Threats>Avian Flu, here.

24 November 2023

Holotype of Plotornis archaeonautes (see the full paper for extended caption)

Daniel Ksepka (Bruce Museum, Greenwich, Connecticut, USA) and colleagues have published open access in the Journal of the Royal Society of New Zealand on a new fossil albatross from New Zealand.

The paper’s abstract follows:

“Albatrosses are among the most intensely studied groups of living birds, yet their fossil record remains sparse. Despite modern albatrosses being more abundant and widespread in the Southern Hemisphere, the vast majority of fossil albatrosses identified to date come from Northern Hemisphere localities. Here, we describe Plotornis archaeonautes sp. nov., a new albatross species from the earliest Miocene that represents the earliest record of Procellariiformes in New Zealand and the earliest uncontroversial record of the clade Pan-Diomedeidae from the Southern Hemisphere. Phylogenetic analyses support the placement of Plotornis outside of the clade uniting all extant albatrosses. The new fossil reveals that stem lineage albatrosses were widespread by the onset of the Neogene. Although the humerus of Plotornis archaeonautes exhibits a short processus supracondylaris dorsalis, this early species may have possessed at least one of the unique ossifications associated with the patagial bracing system present in modern albatrosses.”

Reference:

Ksepka, D.T., Tennyson, A.J.D., Richards, M.D. & Fordyce, R.E. 2023. Stem albatrosses wandered far: a new species of Plotornis (Aves, Pan-Diomedeidae) from the earliest Miocene of New Zealand. Journal of the Royal Society of New Zealand. doi.org/10.1080/03036758.2023.2266390.

John Cooper, Emeritus Information Officer, Agreement on the Conservation of Albatrosses and Petrels, 23 November 2023