---
title: "A translocated hand-reared Short-tailed Albatross is confirmed breeding successfully in Japan's Ogasawara Islands"
---

# A translocated hand-reared Short-tailed Albatross is confirmed breeding successfully in Japan's Ogasawara Islands

In May last year a Short-tailed Albatross *Phoebastria albatrus* chick was found on [Nakodojima Island](http://www.acap.aq/news/latest-news/1786-acap-breeding-site-no-72-nakodojima-island-where-black-footed-and-now-short-tailed-albatrosses-breed?lang=en-GB), five kilometres south of Mukojima Island in Japan's Ogasawara Islands where a translocation project (70 chicks over the four years 2007-2011) was undertaken, but it was not possible to identify the parent birds ([click here](http://www.acap.aq/en/news/latest-news/1759-mystery-chick-found-on-nakodojima-a-sixth-breeding-locality-for-the-short-tailed-albatross)).

 In the current breeding season, a pair made up of a female hand-reared on Mukojima in 2009 and a naturally-reared male bird from Torishima was identified on Nakodojima.  The pair failed to breed this time but it was confirmed that they were the parents of last year's chick by a parentage DNA test in a cooperative study conducted by the Tokyo Metropolitan Government, the Institute of Boninology and the Hokkaido University Museum.

 ![](http://acap.aq/images/stories/acap/Birds/Albatrosses/S/Short_tailed/Short_tailed_Albatross chick Nakodojima s.jpg)

 The 2014 Short-tailed Albatross chick on Nakodojima Island, photograph courtesy of the Tokyo Metropolitan Government

 ![](http://acap.aq/images/stories/acap/Birds/Albatrosses/S/Short_tailed/short-tailed_albatross_mukojima_ 8_may_yamshina_institute.jpg)

 A young Short-tailed Albatross on Mukojima Island, photograph by the Yamashina Institute for Ornithology

 This finding supports the success of the reintroduction of Short-tailed Albatrosses from Torishima to the Ogasawara Islands.

 With thanks to Tomohiro Deguchi, [Yamashina Institute for Ornithology](http://www.yamashina.or.jp/hp/english/) for information.

 *John Cooper, ACAP Information Officer, 27 March 2015*