On 7 May 2014 Kolette Grobler of the Namibian Ministry of Fisheries and Marine Resources observed a Black-browed Albatross Thalassarche melanophris on the sea surface next to her research vessel the !Anichab (= “place of many birds”) about 30 nautical miles west of Lüderitz in southern Namibia at 26° 38’S while on a routine environmental sampling cruise.  The bird was banded with a metal band on the right leg and a red plastic band with the number 626 engraved in white on its left.

Red 626 showing its plastic and metal bands though the clear and calm water

Photographs by Kolette Grobler

An enquiry to the British Antarctic Survey (BAS) reveals that the bird was banded at Bird Island, South Georgia (Islas Georgias del Sur)*.  Andy Wood of BAS reports to ACAP:

“We do in fact have a Red 626 in the Black-brow database carrying metal ring number 1425876.  It is unsexed, and was ringed as an adult - we use the convention of unknown aged birds having metal rings on the right leg, so that fits with the observation.  Red 626 has been a breeding bird at Bird Island since it was ringed in 2007/08, returning every season to breed with the same partner Red 141.  They have successfully raised chicks in 2007/08, 2008/09, 2010/11 and 2012/13.  The breeding history of Red 626 will undoubtedly extend earlier than 2007/08, but it uses a study colony newly started at that time.  Red 626 and Red 141 bred again this season at Bird Island, but their nest failed in mid-January.  From our tracking studies, many Black-brows finishing breeding at Bird Island head off to southern African coastal waters, and we have past ringing recoveries from Namibia.  Great to hear more about one of the Bird Island birds.”

Southern African recoveries and sightings of Black-browed Albatrosses from Bird Island from the 1960s.  Blue circles represent sightings, brown longline casualties and red deaths from other causes. Locations over land are due to inaccurate reporting.  Map by Andy Wood, British Antarctic Survey.

It is noteworthy that whereas this bird and its mate have attempted breeding together for at least eight years in a row they have only been successful in fledging a chick every second year.

With thanks to Kolette Grobler, Jessica Kemper and Andy Wood for information and photographs.

John Cooper, ACAP Information Officer, 14 May 2014

*A dispute exists between the Governments of Argentina and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland concerning sovereignty over the Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas), South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands (Islas Georgias del Sur y Islas Sandwich del Sur) and the surrounding maritime areas.

Diomedea Island is a small rocky elevated island situated in Ardley Cove, Maxwell Bay between Ardley Island and the Fildes Peninsula of King George Island (KGI).  It forms part of the South Shetland Islands off the western coast of the Antarctic Peninsula.  In low areas moss beds and algae are present with lichens occurring on the more elevated rocks.

Three views of Diomedea Island

Close by on the peninsula lie the Chilean Base Presidente Eduardo Frei Montalva  and the Russian Bellingshausen Station.

From the 1979/80 summer season to 2013/14 from nil to 17 pairs of Southern Giant Petrels Macronectes giganteus have been recorded breeding on the island, with the latest season yielding 10 pairs.

 A Southern Giant Petrel on its nest on Diomedea Island

Photographs by Christina Braun

The island was originally named Ostrov Al'batros (Albatross Island, or Isla Albatros in Spanish) by the Soviet Antarctic Expedition of 1968, but was changed to Diomedea in 1979 to avoid confusion with an Albatross Island elsewhere within the general region.  However, albatrosses do not occur and so perhaps Macronectes Island would have been a more appropriate name.

Diomedea Island is located in the direct line of the approach path of the Chilean Teniente Rodolfo Marsh Martin Aerodrome.  Low overflights were common in the past but have been greatly strongly reduced since 2003/04. The island also lies close to anchoring grounds used by supply, cruise and patrol vessels.  Diesel resupply to Presidente Eduardo Frei Montalva takes place via an underwater pipeline close by.  Only occasional visits are made by station personnel; it is not a site where tourism occurs. 

Selected Literature:

Braun, C., Hertel, F., Mustafa, O., Nordt, A., Pfeiffer, S. & Peter, H.-U. 2013.  Environmental situation and management challenges for the Fildes Peninsula Region.  In: Tin, T., Liggett, D., Maher, P. & Lamers, M.E. (Eds). The Future of Antarctica: Human Impacts, Strategic Planning, and Values for Conservation.  Dordrecht: Springer.  pp. 169-191. 

Braun, C., Mustafa, O., Nordt, A., Pfeiffer, S. & Peter, H.-U. 2012.  Environmental monitoring and management proposals for the Fildes Region, King George Island, Antarctica.  Polar Research 31. 18 pp. 

Patterson, D.L., Woehler, E.J., Croxall, J.P., Cooper, J., Poncet, S., Peter, H.-U., Hunter, S. & Fraser, M.W. 2008.  Breeding distribution and population status of the Northern Giant Petrel Macronectes halli and Southern Giant Petrel M. giganteus.  Marine Ornithology 36: 115-124 and appendix.

Peter, H.-U., Kaiser, M. & Gebauer, A. 1991.  Breeding ecology of the southern giant petrels Macronectes giganteus on King George Island (South Shetland Islands, Antarctic).  Zoologisches Jahrbuch Systematik 118: 465-477.

John Cooper, ACAP Information Officer & Christina Braun, University of Jena, Germany, 12 May 2014

Alice Carravieri (Centre d’Etudes Biologiques de Chizé, Villiers-en-Bois, France) and colleagues publish in the journal Environmental Pollution on mercury contamination in the Wandering Albatross Diomedea exulans and other sub-Antarctic albatrosses and petrels.

The paper’s abstract follows:

Mercury (Hg) contamination poses potential threats to ecosystems worldwide.  In order to study Hg bioavailability in the poorly documented southern Indian Ocean, Hg exposure was investigated in the large avian community of Kerguelen Islands.  Adults of 27 species (480 individuals) showed a wide range of feather Hg concentrations, from 0.4 ± 0.1 to 16.6 ± 3.8 µg g-1 dry weight in Wilson’s storm petrels and wandering albatrosses, respectively. Hg concentrations increased roughly in the order crustacean- < fish- ≤ squid- ≤ carrion-consumers, confirming that diet, rather than taxonomy, is an important driver of avian Hg exposure.  Adults presented higher Hg concentrations than chicks, due to a longer duration of exposure, with the only exception being the subantarctic skua, likely because of feeding habits’ differences of the two age-classes in this species.  High Hg concentrations were reported for three species of the poorly known gadfly petrels, which merit further investigation.”

Wandering Albatrosses fly over Kerguelen Island, photograph by Maite Louzao

Click here for a related publication.

Reference:

Carravieri, A., Cherel, Y., Blévin, P., Brault-Favrou, M., Chastel, O. & Bustamante, P.  2014.  Mercury exposure in a large subantarctic avian community.  Environmental Pollution 190: 51-57.

For the complete manuscript click here.

John Cooper, ACAP Information Officer, 11 May 2014

Ki-Baek Nam (Korea Institute of Ornithology, Kyung Hee University, Seoul, Korea) and colleagues write in Korean in the journal Ocean and Polar Research on the effects of predation by Norway Rats Rattus norvegicus on Streaked Shearwaters Calonectris leucomelas when breeding.

http://www.dbpia.co.kr/Journal/IssueList/1537

The paper’s English abstract follows:

“The seabird plays an important role as one of the indicator species for the status of and changes within marine ecosystems.  Therefore, the conservation of seabirds and their habitats is important for maintaining the structure and function of marine ecosystems.  Biological invasions affect most ecosystems on oceanic islands.  In particular, Rattus spp. is the invasive species with the greatest impact on the seabird population.  Introduced predators, like rats, severely affect seabirds and endanger them worldwide.  The breeding population of Streaked Shearwaters Calonectris leucomelas in Sasu Island is one of biggest seabird colonies in Korea, and the Norway Rat Rattus norvegicus is known as an alien predator in this island.  In this study we investigated rates of burrow occupancy and breeding success of Streaked Shearwaters for 7 years, and the impact of Norway Rats on the breeding success of Streaked Shearwaters breeding in Sasu Island for 4 years.  Our results show that the percentage of breeding burrows decreased according to breeding stage during several years in the monitoring period, and that predation by the Norway Rat was the main cause in hatching failures.  Consequently, although our results indicate that their breeding population is not likely to decline, Norway Rats have been affecting the breeding status of Streaked Shearwaters on Sasu Island during the last decade.”

Reference:

Nam, K.-B., Lee, K.-G., Hwang, J.-W. & Yoo, J.-C.  2014.  Variation in breeding burrows of Streaked Shearwaters breeding in Sasu Island, and predation rates by Norway Rats.  Ocean and Polar Research 36: 49-57.

John Cooper, ACAP Information Officer, 10 May 2014