Archived News

 At any time, a number of procellariiform seabirds (albatrosses and petrels) are flying the World's oceans carrying tracking devices, either satellite transmitters or loggers.  Some of these birds are of ACAP-listed species.

 At www.wildlifetracking.org the fortunes of several species can be followed in real time.  Wildlifetracking.org is a partnership of more than 200 projects, tracking 32 species (including seabirds and turtles). 

Currently, three species of shearwaters are being tracked by satellite with daily updates to the maps: Flesh-footed Puffinus creatopus and Sooty P. griseus Shearwaters in the North Pacific and Great Shearwaters P. gravis in the Atlantic on their way home to the islands of Tristan da Cunha.

 The Great Shearwaters are being tracked by Rob Ronconi of Dalhousie University, Canada who is currently on Gough Island in the Tristan Group with the ACAP Information Officer.  During their time at Gough geolocators are being collected and new ones will be deployed on Great Shearwaters and on Southern Giant Petrels Macronectes giganteus by a number of different researchers.

 Earlier information at the Wildlife Tracking web site shows the movements of Black-footed Albatrosses Phoebastria nigripes in the North Pacific from 2004 to 2008.

 John Cooper, ACAP Information Officer, 22 September 20009