Kaikoura Wildlife Rescue has reported that a globally Endangered and nationally Vulnerable Hutton’s Shearwater Puffinus huttoni crash landed from artificial light disorientation and then succumbed to a cat attack. The species breeds only at two sites high up in the mountain range inland from the town of Kaikoura on the east coast of New Zealand’s South Island. Birds commuting to their breeding sites are at risk of being downed in the town, especially on misty or foggy nights when they can become disorientated by street lights.

Kaikoura lies in the Hutton's Shearwater inland flight path

“At this stage it's difficult to tell whether this individual will make it. The head was mauled and the left eye is potentially permanently damaged. Puncture wounds are difficult to find amongst feathers. Pain relief and anti-inflammatories have been administered, the eye rinsed with saline, and the head disinfected. The bird has also been rehydrated. Later it will be fed with blended sardines and electrolytes. Rest overnight will give a good indication of where the bird is at in the morning. Hopefully it makes it and can be fully rehabilitated for release, else humane euthanasia will be the only option" (click here).

The rescued shearwater gets its damaged eye rinsed, photograph from the Kaikoura Wildlife Rescue

Kaikoura Wildlife Rescue operates a facility dedicated to the treatment and rehabilitation of injured and ill native New Zealand birds.

Earlier this month “about a dozen” adult birds flying inland to commence their breeding season were killed by cars after crash-landing on Kaikoura’s roads following cloudy and wet weather. “Obviously … there were a lot of adults that came down with the low cloud and fog and got run over by the early morning traffic. When the roads are wet they look like water to the birds so the roads attract the birds to land on it thinking it is water." Kaikoura residents are being asked to dim or turn off outside lights and keep their cats indoors at night. Calls are also being made for more road signage and the redesign of street lights to reduce light pollution (click here).

Corpses of Hutton's Shearwater killed by cars in Kaikoura

Read a related news story here and follow the Hutton's Shearwater Charitable Trust website and on Facebook to learn more of the species’ needs.

ACAP has reviewed a book recently published on the Hutton’s Shearwater (click here).

John Cooper, ACAP Information Officer, 24 October 2017

Alice Carravieri (Centre d’Etudes Biologiques de Chizé, Université de La Rochelle, Villiers-en-Bois, France) and colleagues have published open access in the journal Royal Society Open Science on changes in aspects of foraging ecology of immature globally Vulnerable Wandering Albatrosses Diomedea exulans as they age.

The paper’s abstract follows:

“Very little is known about trophic ontogenetic changes over the prolonged immaturity period of long-lived, wide-ranging seabirds. By using blood and feather trophic tracers (δ¹³C and δ¹⁵N, and mercury, Hg), we studied age-related changes in feeding ecology during the immature phase of wandering albatrosses Diomedea exulans when they gradually change from a pure oceanic life to visits to their future breeding grounds. Immatures fed in subtropical waters at high trophic positions during moult. Between- and within-individual variations in isotopic niche were very high, irrespective of age, highlighting wide-ranging exploratory behaviours. In summer, while acting as central-place foragers from their future breeding colony, individuals progressively relied on lower trophic level prey and/or southern latitudes as they aged, until occupying a similar isotopic niche to that of adults. Immatures had exceptionally high Hg burdens, with males having lower Hg concentrations than females, suggesting that they foraged more in subantarctic waters. Our findings suggest a progressive ontogenetic niche shift during central-place foraging of this long-lived species.”

An immature Wandering Albatross at sea

Reference:

Carravieri, A., Weimerskirch, H., Bustamante, P., Cherel, Y. 2017. Progressive ontogenetic niche shift over the prolonged immaturity period of wandering albatrosses. Royal Society Open Science DOI: 10.1098/rsos.171039.

John Cooper, ACAP Information Officer, 23 October 2017

A total of 23 globally Endangered and nationally “Naturally Uncommon” Northern Royal Albatross Diomedea sanfordi chicks has fledged at Taiaroa Head situated on the mainland of New Zealand’s South Island this last breeding season. Twenty-five eggs hatched from 38 laid by 36 pairs. Two of the 36 breeding attempts were by female-female pairs which laid a total of four eggs (one each), only one of which was fertile so at least one extra-pair copulation by a male must have occurred. Of the 34 fertile eggs laid, eight embryos died before hatching and one egg was crushed. Two chicks died soon after hatching, probably trampled by parents during nest change overs.

In te 2016/17 season 17 birds banded as chicks returned to the breeding locality as first-time visitors after spending from four to ten years at sea since fledging. The 2017/18 breeding season is set to start with 54 banded birds clocked in by 14 October and expected to commence laying eggs next month.

Among the chicks fledging in the 2016/17 season was Tūmanako (on 28 September), whose nest was followed by a live-streaming camera (“Royal Cam”), now in its second year of operation (watch the season's highlights).  An unnamed chick was the last of the 23 to fledge in mid October. Its male parent was Toroa, the 500th albatross to have fledged from the colony, in 2007, and first seen back in the colony as a seven-year old in 2014. Toroa (Maori for albatross) is the son of Button, the last chick Grandma produced in 1989. At 62 years of age Grandma was then the oldest recorded albatross in the World (click here).

Big Bird!  Royal Cam 2016/17 chick Tūmanako gets weighed while still in the downy phase, photograph from camera footage

Toroa, as a chick in 2007, photograph by Lyndon Perriman

Toroa returns to Taiaroa Head as an adult bird

Read news reports here and here and follow the Royal Albatross Centre on Facebook.

Meanwhile, concerns have been raised of Taiaroa’s albatrosses consuming plastic items while at sea. Eight out nine regurgitations collected from chicks this last season contained plastic items. “Most of the time, small plastic fragments up to 5 cm wide were discovered but everyday items such as plastic bottle caps were also being found” (click here).  Previously, squid lures and plastic fishing floats have been recovered from Taiaroa Northern Royal Albatrosses.

With thanks to the Royal Albatross Centre.

John Cooper, ACAP Information Officer, 19 October 2017

Lehua is a small, uninhabited island sanctuary in the USA’s Hawaiian chain that supports populations of breeding seabirds, including small numbers of ACAP-listed Black-footed Phoebastria nigripes and Laysan P. immutabilis Albatrosses (click here).  Following an unsuccessful attempt in 2009 to eradicate the island’s Pacific Rats Rattus exulans, a second attempt was made this year over August and September with three successive poison bait drops by helicopter (click here).

Lehua Island

Black-footed Albatrosses on Lehua Island, photograph by Eric Vanderwerf

It is usual to wait two years with no sign of rats before formally confirming a treated island is rodent free. However, according to news reports this week the signs for Lehua are already good a month after the last bait drop with no rat sightings or sign and abundant seabird breeding activity recorded on a post-treatment visit: “the island was full of fat, healthy wedge-tailed shearwater [Ardenna pacifica] chicks and we saw no negative impacts of the bait drop.” (click here).

A 28-minute documentary entitled “Lehua Island - Restoration of a Tropical Bird Paradise” will be shown on Hawaii TV this weekend (click here for viewing details).

Read more news reports on the eradication attempt here and here.

John Cooper, ACAP Information Officer, 19 October 2017