Australian Antarctic Division staffers celebrate ‘WAD2024’ outside their Kingston headquarters, reusing their 2021 banner

As in previous years, the Australian Antarctic Division (AAD) marked World Albatross Day, this year with its theme of ‘Marine Protected Areas – Safeguarding our Oceans’, on 19 June with speeches, cakes and a group photograph at its Kingston Headquarters in Tasmania.

WAD2024 cakes with a Marine Protected Area theme by Andrea Polanowski (top) and Leonie Suter (below)

No ‘Bake-off’ competition was held this year, as in the past, but two ‘albicakes’ especially baked for the occasion by Andrea Polanowski and Leonie Suter, along with some other treats, were enjoyed.

Julie McInnes speaks to colleagues at the WAD2024 event

At the event, vertebrate biologist Julie McInnes spoke about World Albatross Day, providing an overview of its importance, mentioning some recent milestones, such as that it was now 10 years since the eradication of all the vertebrate pests on Macquarie Island and 30 years since  albatross monitoring was initiated on the island.  The WAD2024 Marine Protected Areas (MPA) theme was discussed in relation to the recently expanded Macquarie Island MPA and the current review of the Heard and MacDonald Islands MPA.  Julie also talked about the work the AAD is undertaking to collate at-sea tracking data for Macquarie Island seabirds and seals to ascertain how they are utilizing the MPA.  The need for more tracking data was then considered.  Julie is a member representing Australia of ACAP’s Population and Conservation Status, and Taxonomy Working Groups.

Aleks Terauds (left) and Kris Carlyon undertook a 10-day hike to the south of Macquarie Island this year to see the changes in the landscape, photograph by Pete Harmsen

Aleks Terauds, AAD spatial ecologist, spoke briefly about his recent visit to Macquarie and the vegetation on the island which he says was “looking incredible”, following its recovery after the eradication of vertebrate pests.  Read  an article here and watch a video featuring Aleks here about the island’s recovery.  Aleks has also been interviewed for radio.

Striking a pose.  Macquarie Island overwinterers with their WAD2024 banner, photograph from Melanie Wells

With thanks to Mandi Livesey and Julie McInnes, Australian Antarctic Division.

John Cooper, Emeritus Information Officer, Agreement on the Conservation of Albatrosses and Petrels, 04 July 2024

The Great Auk was once widely distributed across islands in the North Atlantic but became extinct due to excessive hunting by humans

Today is World Seabird Day.  Held on 3 July, it marks the date the now extinct Great Auk Pinguinis impennis was last seen alive in 1844.  The World Seabird Union, an organization comprised of the world’s seabird societies, announced the first annual World Seabird Day in 2017.

“Most seabird species are currently threatened by human activities, such as fisheries, oil pollution and climate change.  Seabird scientists and enthusiasts commemorate this date to raise awareness of the ongoing conservation threats to seabird populations.”

 
Wandering Albatross at sea, by April Grossruck of Artists and Biologists Unite for Nature for World Albatross Day 2020, after a photograph by Laurie Smaglick Johnson

Read a 2022 article marking World Seabird Day that concentrates on the threats albatrosses face from longline fisheries here.

03 July 2024

A 29-year-old male Wandering Albatross guards its chick near Prinsloomeer on South Africa's Marion Island on 17 April 2005; the bird was banded as a chick on 2 November 1976, photograph by John Cooper

The “great albatrosses” in the genus Diomedea can be divided into two groups, the two royal albatrosses, endemic to New Zealand and what can be called the “wandering-type group or complex” which is generally considered to be made up of four closely related (and hard to identify at sea) species.  These are the Amsterdam D. amsterdamensis, Antipodean D. antipodensis (with two subspecies, antipodensis and gibsoni), the Tristan D. dabbenena and the Wandering D. exulans.  A view exists that the two Antipodean subspecies should be afforded specific status.  D. a. gibsoni would then become known as Gibson’s Albatross.  Both these subspecies have also been described as “Antipodean Wandering” and Gibson’s Wandering” in the literature, with the Antipodean sensu lato being called the New Zealand Albatross.

The Wandering Albatross currently has no recognized subspecies.  Historically, D. e. chionoptera has been described as a subspecies of the Wandering Albatross (originally as a full species by Salvin in 1986), but is no longer recognized, making the species monotypic.  The taxon, used to describe the larger and generally whiter Wandering Albatrosses of the sub-Antarctic, became known as the Snowy Albatross.

Nowadays, “Snowy” seems to be mainly used on social media groups, often by seabird watchers who frequent “pelagic trips” in the southern hemisphere.  It is not used as a primary common name by most handbooks, scientific journals, the Agreement on the Conservation of Albatrosses and Petrels (ACAP), BirdLife International, IUCN and New Zealand Birds Online (although it is mentioned by some of them as an alternative common name).  However, it is used in some (but not all) recent field guides, by Wikipedia, eBird, in Cornell Lab’s online Birds of the World series and by the IOC World Bird List, thus perpetuating its use among birdwatchers.

A Wandering Albatross in the Drake Passage, photograph by Kirk Zufelt

To avoid too much confusion, I suggest that those who prefer to call the Wanderer a Snowy when writing in social media outlets and for non-scientific print publications, explain at first usage that they are referring to the Wandering Albatross Diomedea exulans.  For scientific publications, handbooks and the like I suggest authors stick to using “Wandering” and avoid the term “Snowy”.

Selected Publications:

Bourne, W.R.P. 1989.  The evolution, classification and nomenclature of the great albatrosses. Le Gerfaut 79: 105-116.

Burg, T.M. & Croxall, J.P. 2004.  Global population structure and taxonomy of the Wandering Albatross species complex.  Molecular Ecology 13: 2345-2355.

Medway, D. 1993.  The identity of the Chocolate Albatross Diomedea spadicea Gmelin, 1789 and of the Wandering Albatross Diomedea exulans of Linnaeus, 1758.  Notornis 40: 145-162.

Schodde, R., Tennyson, A.J.D., Groth, J.G., Lai, J.; Scofield, P. & Steinheimer, F.D. 2017.  Settling the name Diomedea exulans Linnaeus, 1758 for the Wandering Albatross by neotypification.  Zootaxa 4236 (1): 135.

John Cooper, Emeritus Information Officer, Agreement on the Conservation of Albatrosses and Petrels, 02 July 2024, updated 03 July 2024

Ralph E. T. Vanstreels (pictured right) takes the floor for the IAPC7 "Q&A session and wet lab training for working with albatrosses and petrels during the on-going high pathogenicity H5N1 avian influenza outbreak". The session included a demonstration of how to use full personal protective equipment and practical advice on approaches and techniques to adopt to avoid spreading the virus.

The recordings of two ACAP-supported Avian Influenza related sessions from the recent 7^th International Albatross and Petrel Conference (IAPC7) held in Mexico in May are now available at the Conservación de Islas’ YouTube channel.

Wildlife Health Specialist and Veterinary Epidemiologist at Environment and Climate Change Canada, Jolene Giacinti, shared insights into High Pathogenicity Avian Influenza (HPAI), in her plenary talk, “From incursion to impact: Exploring HPAIV dynamics and response in Canada through epidemiology, phylogeography, and mortality assessment”. 

Members of ACAP’s HPAI Intersessional Group facilitated the hybrid workshop “Q&A session and wet lab training for working with albatrosses and petrels during the on-going high pathogenicity H5N1 avian influenza outbreak”. 

The HPAI Group, consisting of thirteen experts on epidemiology, disease risk assessment, and management, advises ACAP on issues related to the ongoing H5N1 avian influenza panzootic and have authored ACAP’s “Guidelines for working with albatrosses and petrels during the on-going high pathogenicity H5N1 avian influenza panzootic”.

The four members of the ACAP HPAI H5N1 Intersessional Group who facilitated the workshop in person at IAPC7, from left to right: Patricia Pereira Serafini, Jolene Giacinti, Ralph E. T. Vanstreels and Amandine Gamble. The four were joined online by group members, Marcela Uhart, Michelle Wille, Megan Tierney, Sarah Michael and Megan Dewar. 

Patricia Pereira Serafini, Co-convenor of the Agreement’s Population and Conservation Status Working Group (PaCSWG), and lead member of ACAP’s HPAI Group highlighted that major drivers for the workshop were to raise awareness of ACAP’s recommendations, to try to promote best-practice surveillance and monitoring initiatives and prevent human-mediated spread of HPAI viruses. Considering the high level of engagement from both in-person and virtual attendees, Patricia concluded that the workshop was a resounding success.

“The HPAI workshop not only met but surpassed our expectations, fostering an environment of learning and collaboration that will have a lasting impact on our practices,” she said. 

“Talks, by Jolene Giacinti, Amandine Gamble and Ralph Vanstreels in person and by Samantha Gibbs and Laura Roberts virtually, were particularly impactful during IAPC7, bringing in a wealth of experience that greatly benefited the conference participants. Their presentations not only informed but also inspired the audience, leading to a more comprehensive grasp of the ongoing pandemic that affects seabirds.”

Mariam Latofski Robles is Director of Development at Grupo de Ecologíay Conservación de Islas (GECI) and was a key organiser of IAPC7. She said one of the highlights, among many at IAPC7, were the sessions on the emerging threat of avian influenza on seabirds.

Jolene Giacinti giving her plenary talk, “From incursion to impact: Exploring HPAIV dynamics and response in Canada through epidemiology, phylogeography, and mortality assessment”

“Jolene Giacinti encouraged us to be prepared for an HPAIV outbreak, sharing fascinating details about virus mutations and adaptations in a wide range of hosts. She also discussed the importance of implementing biosecurity measures and various mitigation strategies,” said Mariam.

The HPAI workshop was an enriching learning opportunity according to Mariam, with information shared on biosafety plans and their implementation, a demonstration of how to use full personal protective equipment, and practical advice on how to avoid spreading the virus. 

“The IAPC7 Organizing Committee wishes to thank ACAP for organizing such an interesting and well delivered workshop. It was great and will be an excellent tool for anyone working with seabirds.”

A recording of the HPAI workshop is now available at the ACAP website, here.

Recordings of all of the plenary talks from IAPC7 and the HPAI workshop are all available at Conservación de Islas’ YouTube channel, here.

ACAP’s “Guidelines for working with albatrosses and petrels during the on-going high pathogenicity H5N1 avian influenza panzootic” are expected to be updated as a result of the workshop. The November 2023 version of the guidelines are available at the ACAP website, here.

Funding for the HPAI workshop and the Plenary Talk at IAPC7 was provided through the ACAP Secondment Programme which supports science and research collaboration between ACAP Parties to aid in the conservation of the Agreement’s listed albatrosses and petrels.

1 July 2024