Alex Bond (The Natural History Museum, Tring, UK) and colleagues have published open access in the Journal of Ornithology on the likely years of extinction of three breeding birds on Tristan da Cunha in the South Atlantic.  The Critically Endangered Tristan Albatross Diomedea dabbenena is likely to have been locally extinct (as a breeding species) on the island by 1880, thought due mainly to over-exploitation by the island’s human population.

The paper does not consider the ACAP-listed Southern Giant Petrel Macronectes giganteus which has bred on Tristan da Cunha in the past, but no longer does so.  A recent record of a vagrant Tristan Albatross photographed ashore on Tristan is also not mentioned.

The paper's abstract follows:

“The overwhelming majority of avian extinctions have occurred on islands, where introduced predators, habitat loss, disease, and human persecution have resulted in the loss of over 160 species in the last 500 years. Understanding the timing and causes of these historical extinctions can be beneficial to identifying and preventing contemporary biodiversity loss, as well as understanding the nature of island ecosystems. Tristan da Cunha (henceforth “Tristan”), the most remote inhabited island in the world, has lost three species from the main island since permanent human settlement in 1811—the Tristan Moorhen (Gallinula nesiotis), Inaccessible Finch (Nesospiza acunhae acunhae), and Tristan Albatross (Diomedea dabbenena). We used recently developed Bayesian methods, and sightings of mixed certainty compiled from historical documents, to estimate the extinction date of these three species from Tristan based on specimens. We estimate that all three species were likely extirpated from Tristan between 1869 and 1880 following a period of significant habitat alteration and human overexploitation, and only the albatross had a high probability of persistence when Black Rats (Rattus rattus) arrived in 1882, the previously assumed cause of extinction for all three species. Better estimates of extinction dates are essential for understanding the causes of historical biodiversity loss, and the combination of historical ecology with modern statistical methods has given us novel insights into the timing and therefore the causes of extinctions on one of the most isolated islands in the world.”

The Tristan Albatross no longer breeds on Tristan da Cunha, photograph from Gough Island by Kalinka Rexer-Huber

Reference:

Bond, A.L., Carlson, C.J. & Burgio, K.R. 2018.  Local extinctions of insular avifauna on the most remote inhabited island in the world.  Journal of Ornithology.  doi.org/10.1007/s10336-018-1590-8.

John Cooper, ACAP Information Officer, 18 August 2018

The Tasmanian Parks & Wildlife Service (PWS) is seeking two volunteers as biologists on Australia’s sub-Antarctic Macquarie Island, breeding home for seven ACAP-listed albatrosses and petrels.

Wandering Albatross chick on Macquarie Island, photograph by Kate Lawrence

PWS is seeking “Expressions of Interest” from suitably qualified people interested in being considered for volunteer biologist roles at Macquarie Island.  Potential participants are requested to submit applications that address the selection criteria.

Up to two successful applicants will be selected to travel to Macquarie Island in November 2018 (timing dependent upon the Australian Antarctic Division shipping schedule).

The successful applicant/s will need to pass Australian Antarctic Division and PWS pre-deployment requirements (including physical and psychological testing), as well as undertake predeparture training that is mandatory for all expeditioners to Macquarie Island, before being confirmed as PWS volunteers.

Contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. for a copy of the selection criteria and the full Expression of Interest document.

Applications close on 24 August 2018.

John Cooper, ACAP Information Officer, 16 August 2016

A sample bank has been maintained by the Brazilian NGO Projeto Albatroz since 2013, with materials collected from seabirds found dead or incidentally caught in fishing operations.  Following the creation of the Beach Monitoring Project (Projeto de Monitoramento de Praias da Bacia de Santos) sponsored by Petrobras, the number of samples collected has increased, creating a need to centralize materials from the various monitored areas, to allow for  maintenance and so that their use is maximised.

New environmental research has just started at the new laboratory of Projeto Albatroz in Florianópolis.  This is the sixth coastal Brazil city where the NGO maintains research equipment and supports scientists. The new lab houses the National Sample Bank for Albatrosses and Petrels, which is now the national reference for the storage of samples for scientific studies on this group of seabirds. The lab is maintained in partnership with the National Centre for Research and Conservation of Wild Birds (Centro Nacional de Pesquisa e Conservação de Aves Silvestres - CEMAVE/ICMBio/MMA), and is based within R3 Animal, an NGO focused on the rescue and recovery of marine wildlife that is located in the Rio Vermelho Park (Parque Estadual do Rio Vermelho) on Santa Caterina Island, near to Florianópolis.

The collection of samples and their storage follows protocols defined by the Agreement on the Conservation of Albatrosses and Petrels (ACAP). The research programme is managed by Alice Ribeiro, technical consultant and Patricia Serafini, advisor to the Project and Environmental Analyst of CEMAVE / ICMBio, and Vice-Convenor of ACAP’s Population and Conservation Status Working Group (PaCSWG). With the creation of the National Sample Bank, Projeto Albatroz aims to exchange materials and information among partner institutions (universities, research groups, amongst others), thus optimising the use of scientific samples for all interested stakeholders.

On 8 August 2018 a formal agreement between Projeto Albatroz and R3 Animal was signed at the R3 Animal Station in the Rio Vermelho Park. The agreement was signed by Tatiana Neves (General Manager, Projeto Albatroz) and Cristiane Kolesnikovas (President, R3 Animal).  ACAP’s Executive Secretary, Marco Favero, was kindly invited to participate in the signing event as he was visiting to organise the venue for the Eleventh Meeting of the ACAP Advisory Committee (AC11), to be held in Florianópolis, Brazil, in May 2019.

Tatiana Neves (left) and Cristiane Kolesnikovas (right) sign the formal agreement between R3 Animal and Projeto Albatroz

From left to right: Tatiana Neves, Patricia Serafini, Cristiane Kolesnikovas and Marco Favero formally open the National Sample Bank for Albatrosses and Petrels Laboratory in Florianópolis

Click here for two examples of the Beach Monitoring Project’s work with ACAP-listed species.

[Text translated and edited from the original Portuguese]

Marco Favero, ACAP Executive Secretary, 15 August 2018

Newell’s Shearwaters Puffinus newelli are endemic to just a few Hawaiian islands and are considered globally Endangered.  Predation by feral cats Felis catus on the island of Kauai is a serious concern that the Kaua'i Endangered Seabird Recovery Project is working to address in the birds’ mountain breeding sites as recent postings to its Facebook page show.

“Yet another endangered Newell's Shearwater killed by a feral cat while sitting in its burrow - this one in Upper Manoa valley. While the site is actively managed for introduced predators, cats are so widespread on the island that they continue to appear in these areas with devastating effect. This is why predator proof fences are one option we are actively pursuing in some of these sites."

“A full video of the recent cat kill of a nesting endangered Newell's Shearwater here on Kauai. Unfortunately this cat predated nesting birds from two burrows that we know of in this area. This, once again, demonstrates the need for the intensive management of introduced predators on Kaua'i and the need for refugia free of introduced predators to protect all of our rare native bird species.”

Read more ACAP Latest News postings on the conservation efforts directed at Newell’s Shearwaters.

John Cooper, ACAP Information Officer, 14 August 2018