Following the cancellation of the in-attendance event due the COVID pandemic and the uncertainty surrounding travel and access to Australia, registration is now open for the virtual Third World Seabird Conference (vWSC3) to be held over 4 - 8 October 2021.  Further information regarding the schedule and additional submission opportunities will be announced in the next few weeks.  Register before the early bird deadline of 13 September or by 27 September to secure the lowest rates (range US$10-150).  More information regarding the rates and payment details can be found here.

Registration will cover:

Access to four full days of conference sessions
Complimentary access to pre-conference workshops on the first day (pre-registration is required)
Two dedicated virtual poster and exhibitor sessions
Plenary sessions, multiple parallel sessions and networking opportunities
An online programme and abstract book
The opportunity to network and liaise with research colleagues and leading international scientists.

“We're looking forward to a virtual event that is inclusive, diverse, and representative of the global nature of seabirds and have reduced registration rates to encourage participation by seabird researchers from around the world.”

John Cooper, ACAP Information Officer, 09 July 2021

A Black-footed Albatross Phoebastria nigripes approaches a floating balloon, photograph by Rich Stallcup

ACAP Latest News has reported on numerous times of albatrosses and petrels ingesting or becoming entangled by helium-filled balloons that had been released in the open air and subsequently returned to earth or sea after bursting (click here).  Unless successfully treated by rehabilitation centres it seems many of the affected birds will have succumbed.   Around the world various NGOs and social media groups have been working assiduously to persuade local, regional or national authorities to ban, or at least limit, the intentional outdoor release of lighter-than-air balloons, with it is fair to say, limited results (for example Balloons Blow and Save Queensland from Balloons).

Significant news then that on 30 June the State of Hawaii banned (as from 1 January 2023, 18 months away) the intentional release of all balloons outside (with the exceptions of hot air, meteorological and research balloons).  “Sea turtles, albatrosses and other marine life that eat squid and jellyfish can mistake balloons in the ocean for food.  This is due to the tentacle like appearance of the plastic ribbons and the balloons which undergo brittle fracture in the air when they burst.  When ingested, balloons become sticky and gooey and are impossible for an animal or bird to move through their digestive system.  Blockages of the gastro-intestinal tract caused by balloons leads the animal or bird to starve to death.  The plastic ribbons attached to balloons are also a danger as they can cause injury or death to marine life that become entangled in them or ingest them” (click here).

It remains to be seen whether Hawaii’s lead will be copied by other states in the USA, or in other parts of the world where balloons have been reported leading to the death of albatrosses and petrels.  However, it seems the pressure groups will continue to work towards more bans.

Read more on Hawaii’s action here.

John Cooper, ACAP Information Officer, 07 July 2021

Tristan Albatross, artwork by Maureen Rousseau, from a photograph by Michelle Risi

The follows news item is taken in its entirety from BirdLife International’s website.  It has been written by Oli Yates, Head of BirdLife’s Marine Programme.

“With a new protected area and a campaign to remove invasive mice, there have been many recent advances in the conservation of this Critically Endangered albatross. But our work isn’t over yet. Discover the measures in place to safeguard the species – and the gaps that still need to be filled.

The Tristan Albatross Diomedea dabbenena (Critically Endangered) is one of the great albatrosses, ranging widely across the South Atlantic and into the Indian Ocean. These birds feed on fish and squid in surface waters, returning to their nest sites every second year where eggs are laid in January, hatch in March-April and fledge eight to nine months later from around November.

Almost the entire global population of Tristan Albatross nest at Gough Island, an incredibly remote island in the middle of the South Atlantic – the most southerly of the Tristan da Cunha island group, on the very edge of the strong westerly winds known as the ‘roaring forties’. This UNESCO Natural World Heritage site is perfectly placed, if you’re an albatross, with year-round windy conditions, highly productive waters of the Tristan da Cunha Exclusive Economic Zone within immediate reach, and roughly equidistant between the continental shelves of South America and southern Africa.  

The small community at Edinburgh of the Seven Seas, the settlement at Tristan da Cunha,  have recently made a huge contribution to marine conservation by designating a Marine Conservation Zone across almost 700,000 km² of their Exclusive Economic Zone. This ‘no-take zone’ excludes fishing in most areas, with low-impact sustainable fishing permitted around the islands and seamounts to ensure the islanders can maintain economic and food security. The people of Tristan da Cunha have given the world one the biggest sanctuaries for wildlife.

Gough Island would be the perfect habitat, but for the house mice which were accidentally introduced decades ago by visiting ships. Over time, the mice learned to exploit the young chicks of albatrosses and petrels, which have no natural defence against the mammalian threat. The mice are now estimated to account for the loss of over two million seabird eggs and chicks each year. This ghastly reality has ravaged the Tristan Albatross population, and now recent evidence shows the killer mice are able to devour the adult birds too. An incredible project is underway to eradicate these non-native mice from the island - one of the world's most challenging island restoration projects – which would restore the fortunes of the island's birds.

Increased protection for this Critically Endangered species is coming on in leaps and bounds at the breeding site and its surrounding waters. This improved protection is also reinforced by vital improvements in fishery management in the Benguela Current, where seabird deaths in the Namibian demersal longline fishery have been reduced by 98%, and in the South Africa hake trawl fishery by 90%. That equates to over 30,000 birds saved every year.

Despite these stunning advances, observers on Asian distant water tuna fishing vessels continue to report accidental ‘bycatch’ of Tristan Albatrosses in areas managed by the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas on the High Seas, outside the Tristan Marine Protected Zone.

The RSPB (BirdLife in the UK) runs a monitoring programme for Tristan Albatrosses on Gough Island. Fledgling and adult Tristan Albatrosses receive unique leg rings, so that the population can be monitored and understood over time. In the last year three rings from adult Tristan Albatrosses have been recovered by fisheries observers, indicating fishing vessels are likely not using the seabird bycatch prevention measures they are required to deploy. When used correctly, the mitigation measures (weighting the fishing lines, setting them at night and adding and brightly-coloured ‘bird-scaring lines’), are highly effective at reducing bycatch to negligible levels.

The around 95% of distant water fishing vessels do not carry observers. In order to enforce mandatory conservation measures, we need much stronger monitoring, a greater number of observers and the use of electronic monitoring technology. These remain key pieces of the puzzle to ensure the survival of these magnificent birds.”

With thanks to Jessica Law and Oli Yates.

John Cooper, ACAP Information Officer, 06 July 2021

A College School scholar points out a Wandering Albatross

With this year’s World Albatross Day celebrated on 19 June now past it is indeed welcome to hear of “grass roots” activities that marked the day away from the public gaze of social media, especially those that raise awareness of the conservation needs of albatrosses among young children.  The following example of working with children (and with adults) in support of ‘WAD2021’ comes from Kate Neasy, who teaches French and poetry and is based in Hobart, Tasmania, writing last month to ACAP’s Executive Secretary.

“It began with an email from Christine Bogle, the Executive Secretary of ACAP, who is a member of my French conversation group.  We meet to practise our French and Christine has talked about her work from time to time.  Her e-mail contained a detailed media release about la Journée Mondiale de l’Albatros in French.  I had to look up many words, but I became very interested.  I simplified the original document and added some images to help my adult beginner French students.  I also found some gorgeous illustrations that I made into posters to put round our classroom to attract attention.  We all learned a heap of new French words about the species of albatrosses, the danger they are in, the methods of fishing, the measures that can be taken to prevent so many albatross deaths and as an extra, how the albatross is being useful in detecting illegal fishing boats.

Kate Neasey. French & Poetry Teacher, The Cottage School

I also work in a small independent primary school, called The Cottage School, in Bellerive, Tasmania.  This school is wonderful, our motto is “Small School, Big Difference” and one of the differences is the emphasis on looking after others and our environment.  The children are very aware of issues such as climate change, recycling, healthy and ethical practices.  Classes go on many environment days when they explore particular habitats and conditions.  A couple of enterprising students started the popular “Wilderness Warriors” club, where the kids gather once a week to learn about areas such as the Tarkine [Forest Reserve] in Tasmania.”

With the Grade 1 and 2 class this term, the class teacher has focused on migration.  The children have read several books about people, animals and birds migrating.  They already knew about World Albatross Day and were full of facts about bird migration so we had a great discussion (in English, their French is basic).

This week when our conversation group meets, I will give them copies of the information I gave my adult students and start a discussion in French and the posters will still be on the walls for them to examine.  One more small step in raising awareness about the magnificent albatrosses.”

The International Association of Antarctic Tour Operators (IATTO) creates a World Albatross Day poster in French

With grateful thanks to Kate Neasey, or as the French say at Le Tour de France “Chapeau!”

John Cooper, ACAP Information Officer, 05 July 2021