Thomas Good (Conservation Biology Division, Northwest Fisheries Science Center, National Marine Fisheries Service, Washington, Seattle, USA) and colleagues have produced a report on the mortality of Short-tailed Albatrosses Phoebastria albatrus in longline fisheries.

The report’s Executive Summary follows:

“In accordance with the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) Biological Opinion (BiOp) on Continuing Operation of the Pacific Coast Groundfish Fishery, this document provides an analysis of observed bycatch and fleet-wide take estimates of U.S. Endangered Species Act (ESA)-listed short-tailed albatross (Phoebastria albatrus) in all sectors of the west coast groundfish fishery from 2010–2013.  Short-tailed albatrosses are large, pelagic seabirds of the Order Procellariiformes with long narrow wings adapted for soaring just above the water surface.  They are the largest of the three species of North Pacific albatrosses and are “continental shelf-edge specialists.”  Birds breed at 5-6 years of age; 25% of breeding age adults may forego breeding in a given year.  Females lay single eggs, and chicks are fed by adults by surface feeding on squid, shrimp, fish, and fish eggs.  Bycatch of short-tailed albatrosses in commercial fisheries continues to be a major conservation concern.  From 1983 to 2009, eleven short-tailed albatross were documented in North Pacific groundfish fisheries.  From 2010-2014, eight short-tailed albatross mortalities have been observed during commercial fishing activities, six in Alaska, one off Oregon, and one off Japan.  On April 11, 2011, a short-tailed albatross mortality was documented in the limited entry sablefish fishery off the Oregon coast.  Following this mortality in one of the Pacific Coast Groundfish Fisheries, the Pacific Fisheries Management Council adopted recommendations for seabird bycatch mitigation, requiring streamer lines be deployed during setting operations on commercial fixed gear vessels 55’ (17 m) or greater in length; smaller vessels will not be required to use seabird bycatch avoidance measures under the current council action.  Additionally, outreach efforts are increasing seabird bycatch awareness as well as voluntary use of seabird deterrents throughout the U.S. portion of the range of this species.  Annual bycatch estimates varied as a function of hypothetical levels of seabird carcasses dropping off -before making it to observer sampling and varying estimates of the global short-tailed albatross population.  The existing estimate for the global black-footed albatross population has not been updated since 2009 and could also influence these calculations if there has been a substantial change to that population estimate.”

Mortality of Short-tailed Albatrosses at sea

Short-tailed Albatross at sea, photograph by Aleks Terauds

Reference:

Good, T.P., Tuttle,V., Jannot, J., Shama , R., Riley,N. & McVeigh, J. 2015.  Observed and Estimated Bycatch of Short-tailed Albatross in U.S. West Coast Groundfish Fisheries 2010-2013.    42 pp.

John Cooper, ACAP Information Officer, 28 June 2015

Sooty Shearwater, photograph by John Graham

Grant Humphries (Farallon Institute, Pataluma, California, USA) and colleagues have written in PICES Press on using information from seabirds to predict climate events such as El Niño in the Pacific Ocean.

Top marine predators, such as seabirds, are particularly responsive to changes in oceanographic conditions during and other anomalous ocean conditions.  Declines in the breeding success and cahick size of Sooty Shearwaters Puffinus griseus in New Zealand are potential leading indicators of El Niño by up to 14 months. 

Answering the question “what are the birds telling us”? could provide insight into complex climate-marine ecosystem dynamics that also appear to be changing in unanticipated ways.

Reference:

Humphries, G.R.W., Velarde, E., Anderson, D.W., Haase, B. & Sydeman, W.J. 2015.  Seabirds as early warning indicators of climate events in the Pacific.  PICES Press 23: 40-43.

John Cooper, ACAP Information Officer, 27 June 2015

Susan Robinson (Invasive Species Branch, Department of Primary Industries, Parks, Water and Environment, Hobart, Australia) and colleagues have published in the New Zealand Journal of Ecology on the recovery of Tasman Island’s Short-tailed Shearwaters Puffinus tenuirostris and Fairy Prions Pachyptila turtur after the removal of feral Domestic Cats Felis catus.

The paper’s abstract follows:

"A restoration programme was initiated in 2008 in response to high levels of seabird predation by feral cats (Felis catus) at Australia’s largest fairy prion (Pachyptila turtur) colony on Tasman Island, Tasmania.  The primary knockdown involved aerial baiting with para-aminopropiophenone (PAPP) in meat baits. The efficacy of baiting was lower than expected resulting in trapping and hunting commencing earlier than planned.  Cats were successfully eradicated over two weeks.  Key to the success of the programme was the identification of a narrow window of low prey availability for cats.  Post-eradication monitoring of the two most common seabird species, fairy prions and short-tailed shearwaters (Ardenna tenuirostris), showed positive signs towards population recovery. Prion activity increased three-fold and shearwater breeding success increased.”

Short-tailed Shearwater

Click here for an earlier news item on conservation efforts on Tasman Island.

Reference:

Robinson, S., Gadd, L., Johnston, M. & Pauza, M. 2015.  Long-term protection of important seabird breeding colonies on Tasman Island through eradication of cats.  New Zealand Journal of Ecology 39.

John Cooper, ACAP Information Officer, 26 June 2015

The following news comes from the Seabirds.net member discussion group of the World Seabird Union.

“The first themed #seabirdersaturday on Twitter is this upcoming Saturday.  It is chaired by José Manuel Arcos (@PepArcos) who will be around 1400-1600 GMT to lead the conversation and answer questions that people might have.

Seabird bycatch is regarded as one of the major threats for many seabird species, particularly albatrosses, petrels and shearwaters throughout the world.  For years research and conservation action were focused in longline fleets operating in the southern Oceans, where many albatross species were experiencing sharp declines due to this factor of added mortality.  However, there’s increasing evidence that the problem extends to other regions and involves several gear types.

One of the bycatch hotspots worldwide appears to be the Mediterranean, although the information there is still patchy and precludes a proper assessment.  The basin is particularly sensitive from a seabird point of view, since diversity is high, with quite a few endemic taxa, and populations are relatively small.

Of the seabirds of conservation concern, two species deserve particular attention, the Balearic shearwater Puffinus mauretanicus (Critically Endangered) and the Yelkouan shearwater P. yelkouan (Vulnerable).  Both are endemic to the Mediterranean, with small global populations and sharp declining trends that could lead to their extinction in the near future. Although they are affected by introduced predators and other threats in their colonies, the major drivers of their decline seem to occur at sea, and bycatch postulates itself as the most important of them, particularly on longlines.  Other endemic taxa are also regularly affected by longline bycatch, including Scopoli’s shearwater Calonectris diomedea and Audouin’s gull Larus audouinii.

But most of the information on bycatch comes from the western Mediterranean, with recent work also conducted in the central (Malta) and eastern basin (Greece).  Information regarding other gears, such as set nets (that might impact the Mediterranean shag Phalacrocorax aristotelis desmarestii), purse-seines and trawlers, is also very limited. BirdLife is trying to fill these gaps with its new Seabird Task Force, but the task ahead is huge.

Next #seabirdersaturday we want to discuss on the topic of seabird bycatch in the Mediterranean and try to put in common information from ornithologists all around the basing, as well as beyond.

Join the conversation on 27 June 1400-1600 GMT, and please help spread the word!”

A Yelkouan Shearwater gets caught on a longline, photograph by Vero Cortes

The Balearic Shearwater is an ACAP-listed species.  The Yelkouan and Cory’s Shearwaters have been identified by ACAP as potential candidates for listing within the Agreement.

The World Seabird Union's mission is to place seabird research, management, and conservation into a worldwide perspective.  Its vision is to aid in creating global partnerships that will continue into the future by sharing research, knowledge, and ideas on a global level.

John Cooper, ACAP Information Officer, 25 June 2015