George (left) and Geraldine return for a new breeding season, photograph by USFWS/Jonathon Plissner

UPDATE:  The Short-tailed Albatross have an egg for the 2023/24 season and incubation is proceeding, with the male having taken over duties from the female after she laid her egg last month. On 2 November George and Geraldine's first chick (2018/19 season) was sighted back on Sand Midway's island as a four-year old juvenile.  It has been seen ashore previously (along with a younger sibling).  Perhaps there will be more than a single breeding pair on Midway Atoll one day?

"George is notably panting in this image [of him incubating] much like dogs do to stay cool in warmer temperatures and in the heat of the day albatross often put their back to the wind and literally lift their feathers to cool off",  photograph by Jon Plissner, 29 October 2023 

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The Vulnerable Short-tailed Albatross Phoebastria albatrus pair, known as George and Geraldine, are back on Midway Atoll. The birds were sighted together on Sand Island by a Fish and Wildlife Service volunteer team on 16 October.

“George was banded as a chick on the island of Torishima off the coast of Japan in 2005. He first arrives to Kuaihelani [Midway Atoll] in November 2006. For many years he would return as truly a lonesome George until Geraldine appears in 2016 when they are seen courting and practicing their dance moves. However, it wasn't until 2019 when they reared their first chick on Midway Atoll National Wildlife Refuge.”

The sole Short-tailed Albatross pair on the atoll has now raised four chicks to fledging; two of have been seen back on Midway as juveniles. Access previous posts to ACAP Latest News on George and Geraldine here.

Information from the Friends of Midway National Wildlife Refuge Facebook Page.

John Cooper, Emeritus Information Officer, Agreement on the Conservation of Albatrosses and Petrels, 24 October 2023, updated 05 November 2023

The Pacific Seabird Group’s 51^st Annual Meeting has opened for registrations. The theme for the event is “Faces of Seabird Conservation - shining a spotlight on the humans that love seabirds”.

The event will take place at the Grand Hyatt Seattle, Seattle, Washington, U.S.A. Organisers have promised a packed agenda as well as a selection of exciting field trips, including a bird watching tour, Seattle Aquarium tour, and Burke Museum tour.

Abstracts, inspired by the topics listed below, can be submitted until 28 November 2023: 

• Symposium: Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza
• Special paper session: Banding
• Special paper session: Offshore Wind Energy
• Breeding biology
• Citizen science, outreach, and local engagement
• Climate change effects
• Conservation, restoration, and policy
• Contaminants and disease
• Foraging and fisheries
• Habitats and distribution
• Migratory and non-breeding biology
• Movement and behaviour
• Physiology and energetics
• Population dynamics and trends
• Tools and techniques
• Traditional ecological knowledge

Travel awards are also available to those who qualify. Applications for travel awards are included as part of the abstract submission process. More information on travel awards can be found, here.

For more information, head to the Pacific Seabird Group’s website for the event, here.

03 November 2023

Mouse attack! This breeding Wandering Albatross found dead on Marion Island in April 2023 showed clear signs of wounds caused by House Mice, photograph by Michelle Risi

Maëlle Connan (Marine Apex Predator Research Unit, Nelson Mandela University, Gqeberha, South Africa) and colleagues have published early view and open access in the journal Biological Invasions on observations of introduced House Mice Mus musculus attacking and killing adult Critically Endangered Tristan Albatrosses Diomedea dabbenena on Gough Island and adult Vulnerable Wandering Albatrosses D. exulans on Marion Island.  The death of breeding adults confirms the need to eradicate the mice. Unfortunately, the attempt by the Gough Island Restoration Programme to eradicate Gough’s mice in 2021 failed. Eradication of the mice on Marion Island is set to take place in winter 2026, according to the Mouse-Free Marion Project.

The publication also reports observations of two wounded Wandering Albatrosses (thought to also be due to mice) photographed at the same time; their fate being unknown. See the photographs below.

 
The corpse of a female adult Tristan Albatross found after being attacked by mice on Gough Island in April 2021, photograph by Roelf Daling

The paper’s abstract follows:

“Invasive rodents threaten native species in numerous ecosystems, especially oceanic islands. The House Mouse Mus musculus is the only introduced mammal species on sub-Antarctic Gough and Marion Islands. Ample evidence exists of mice preying upon seabird chicks on these two islands, but there have been only a few reports of attacks on adult seabirds, none of which has been fatal. We report the first deaths of adult great albatrosses due to mouse attacks. On Gough Island, three Tristan Albatrosses Diomedea dabbenena (Critically Endangered) brooding small chicks were observed with wounds typical of mouse attacks in March-April 2021; two likely abandoned their chick, causing breeding failure, and the third was found dead eight days after discovery with large blowfly larvae in the wound. On Marion Island, two wounded and eight dead adult Wandering Albatrosses D. exulans (Vulnerable) were found in April 2023. Inspection of the wounded individuals, as well as the injuries on the fresh carcasses strongly suggest that mouse predation was the cause of death. Gough Island is home to virtually all Tristan Albatrosses, and Marion Island is the single most important breeding site for Wandering Albatrosses, home to about a quarter of all breeding birds. The death of breeding adults of these long-lived species emphasizes the urgent need to eradicate introduced mice from these islands.”

Another view of the dead Wandering Albatross with typical wounds caused by mice on its wings, photograph by Chris Jones

Wounded Wandering Albatrosses, Marion Island, April 2023.  Top male, bottom female,  photographs by Chris Jones

With thanks to Maëlle Connan, Roelf Daling, Chris Jones and Michelle Risi.

Reference:

Connan, M., Jones, C.W., Risi, M.M., Smyth, L.K., Oppel, S., Perold, V., Stevens, K.L., Daling, R. & Ryan, P.G. 2023. First evidence of mouse predation killing adult great albatrosses.  Biological Invasions doi.org/10.1007/s10530-023-03177-2.

John Cooper, Emeritus Information Officer, Agreement on the Conservation of Albatrosses and Petrels, 02 November 2023

Which bird will get your vote? The ACAP-listed Buller's Albatross is one of 77 birds to choose from in Forest & Bird's search for New Zealand's Bird of the Century. A pair of non-breeding Buller’s Albatrosses preen on Solander Island; photograph by Jean-Claude Stahl

The New Zealand conservation organisation, Forest & Bird, are marking their 100^th birthday this year and as part of their celebrations are searching for a mighty feather to put in their cap.  

In a twist on the organisation’s annual Bird of the Year competition, Forest & Bird are asking the bird-loving public to cast their vote to crown New Zealand's Bird of the Century.

Seventy-seven native birds are in the running for the accolade, including two ACAP-listed species: the globally Endangered and Nationally Critical Antipodean Albatross Diomedea antipodensis and the globally Near Threatened and nationally Declining Buller's Albatross Thalassarche bulleri.

To raise awareness of ACAP-listed species and the threats they are facing, the Agreement has been producing a series of infographic posters which can be downloaded at the ACAP website. The Antipodean Albatross infographic, sponsored by New Zealand’s Department of Conservation (NZDOC), is amongst those already featured, with the Buller’s Albatross infographic (also sponsored by NZDOC) intended to be be available in the first half of 2024.

Five extinct species have also been included as candidates in the competiton in order to highlight the loss of biodiversity in New Zealand, and to serve as a reminder to protect those species that remain.

Forest & Bird have created a profile for each of the 77 bird contestants on their website, here. Profiles include information on the species, their conservation status, and in some cases a recording of their song. Voters are permitted to select up to five birds for submission to the competition.

Voting opened on Monday 30 October and will close at 5pm on Sunday 12 November 2023. The winning bird will be announced on Monday 13 November 2023.   

01 November 2023