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Two Black-browed Albatrosses interact on New Island, South Atlantic; photograph by Georgina Strange, poster design by Bree Forrer
The Albatross and Petrel Agreement is once again pleased to release a set of 12 freely downloadable photo posters for this year’s World Albatross Day with its theme of “Plastic Pollution” in a new language – this time in Japanese. Previously, the poster set has been made available in ACAP’s three official languages – English, French and Spanish, and most recently in Portuguese. The ‘WAD2023’ logo is also available in Japanese.
Although not a Party to the Agreement, Japan has attended and contributed to ACAP meetings as a Range State*. The larger part of the global population of the Vulnerable Short-tailed Albatross Phoebastria albatrus breeds on Japan’s Torishima. Japan is also an ACAP range state by way of undertaking fishing that interacts with ACAP-listed species, notably through its high-seas pelagic longline fisheries for tuna in the Atlantic, Indian, Pacific and Southern Oceans.
ACAP has previously made its Seabird Bycatch Mitigation Fact Sheets available in Japanese.
It is hoped the photo posters can be used within Japan to increase awareness of the conservation plight being faced by albatrosses and petrels and aid the country in celebrating World Albatross Day come 19 June.
A Northern Royal Albatross in flight off New Zealand; photograph by Oscar Thomas, poster design by Bree Forrer
With grateful thanks for translations provided by Yasuko Suzuki, BirdLife International Marine Programme, Tokyo, Japan.
* “Range State” means any State that exercises jurisdiction over any part of the range of albatrosses or petrels, or a State, flag vessels of which are engaged outside its national jurisdictional limits in taking, or which have the potential to take, albatrosses and petrels [from the Agreement text].
John Cooper, Emeritus Information Officer, Agreement on the Conservation of Albatrosses and Petrels, 04 May 2023