Shy Albatross in flight, by Wendell Ribeiro, Artists and Biologists Unite for Nature, 2020

Peter Ryan & Oluwadunsin Adekola (FitzPatrick Institute, University of Cape Town, Douth Africa) have published in Ostrich Journal of African Ornithology on moult of White-capped/Shy Albatrosses Thalassarche steadi/cauta killed in South African waters.

The paper’s abstract follows:

“Albatrosses typically only replace a subset of flight feathers each annual moult cycle. We scored the moult of 662 White-capped/Shy Albatrosses Thalassarche steadi/cauta, using birds that had been killed by longline fisheries off South Africa. Most adults and immatures alternated replacing the outer primaries (phase 1) and inner primaries (phase 2), but there was considerable variation among adults, with 0–10 primaries replaced each moult cycle. Birds in phase 1 moult replaced fewer primaries than birds in phase 2, but the proportion by mass was similar. Adults replaced more primaries than immatures as there was a disproportionate number of adults in phase 2 moult (82%), which might indicate that most adults off South Africa are in their first year after a successful breeding attempt, but a similar bias occurred among beached birds from New Zealand and Australia. The outer primaries were usually replaced outwards from P8, but the replacement sequence was more variable among the inner primaries. Secondary moult overlapped with primary moult, but not all secondaries were moulted each year. Adults had more active moult centres and replaced more secondaries at once than immatures. Tail moult started after primary moult, with 1–11 feathers growing from 1–6 active centres. Some birds replaced their rectrices in pairs, with often 2 or 3 pairs moulting at once, but others replaced alternate feathers or almost all rectrices at once. A few birds exhibited intense wing moult, but the norm was to replace only 1 or 2 primaries and 1–6 secondaries at once. Age- and sex-related differences in moult intensity presumably result from different time constraints. Adult White-capped/Shy Albatrosses take a year off between successful breeding attempts, allowing time for a more protracted moult. However, we cannot explain the intense moult in some immatures. Our findings support recent studies showing that albatross flight feather moult patterns are more varied than previously reported.”

Reference:

Ryan, P.G. & Adekola, O.E 2023. Pattern and intensity of moult in White-capped/Shy Albatrosses Thalassarche steadi/cauta. Ostrich: 10.2989/00306525.2023.2263169.

John Cooper, Emeritus Information Officer, Agreement on the Conservation of Albatrosses and Petrels, 09 November 2023

(Photos left - right) Agustina with Dr Ingrid van Putten from the CSIRO and with Dr Christine Bogle on her visit to the ACAP Secretariat in Hobart

Argentinian PhD student, Agustina Iwan is nearing the completion of her ACAP Secondment in Australia. Agustina’s project, titled, “Socio-ecological Approach to the Problem of Seabird Bycatch in Commercial Fisheries in Argentina", aims to shed light on the human element of seabird conservation, focussing specifically on the barriers and opportunities for fishers in implementing conservation measures to reduce the incidental death of seabirds in commercial fisheries. 

Commercial fisheries pose the biggest threat to seabirds, with hundreds of thousands of seabirds dying each year from interactions with fishing gear, especially during longline- and trawl-fishing operations. Whilst technical solutions to reduce seabird bycatch in fisheries exist, such as those contained in ACAP’s Best Practice Advice, Agustina’s research proposes that without understanding the perceptions, culture, and customs of individuals, impactful uptake of mitigation measures may remain elusive. 

During her five months in Australia Agustina has collaborated with researchers specialising in human behaviour and conservation management who have helped her apply qualitative analysis tools and approaches to the in-depth interviews she conducted with stakeholders in Argentine fisheries. 

Researchers at two host institutions have welcomed Agustina during her time in the country: Dr Brock Bergseth, DECRA Research Fellow at James Cook University’s ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies and Dr Ingrid van Putten, Adjunct Senior Researcher at the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO).  Agustina has also had the opportunity to work with researchers from the Centre for Marine Socio-ecology at the University of Tasmania.

Speaking about Agustina’s time at James Cook University, Dr Brock Bergseth said: “Agustina was a very motivated, driven, and resourceful visitor and made the most of her time at James Cook University. During her visit, she made considerable progress in analysing her data, conceptualising and situating her research within the larger field, and in building her professional networks. Agustina was a very welcome addition to the lab group – we enjoyed hosting her and would happily welcome her back in the future.”

At CSIRO in Tasmania, Agustina was able to share her knowledge of Argentine fisheries with Dr Ingrid Van Putten, who has a keen interest in behavioural factors in conservation management. In commenting about Agustina’s secondment, she acknowledged the differences in the fisheries of Australia and Argentina, but pointed to the human element as being universal to both, saying: “the complexity of fisheries and conservation issues may vary between places around the world, but understanding human behaviour is essentially key everywhere. If we want the adoption of conservation measures, studies like the one Agustina is doing, are going to help tremendously. Agustina has managed to unpick and better understand the issues using sophisticated social science analysis tools. I am impressed with the work and hopefully work with her and her team in Argentina again in the future.”

Seeing the sights! Agustina enjoying a walk in Mount Field National Park, Tasmania (left), and taking in Wallaman Falls, in the Girringun National Park, Queensland (right).

The project aligns closely with ACAP's objective to maintain a favourable conservation status for its listed species. By providing insights into the current situation in Argentinean fisheries, her research hopes to provide valuable insights and practical recommendations for industry stakeholders, government institutions, and other relevant parties. 

In expressing her excitement about the project, Agustina emphasised her eagerness to learn and contribute to global conservation efforts: “Working on aspects of marine conservation is stimulating to me because I think it's about contributing, even in a very small way, to inhabiting this planet in a more conscious way. Having had the opportunity to stay in Australia has been very enriching for my project and my doctorate, particularly working with Brock Bersgeth and Ingrid Van Putten. Both are professionals with a long history in marine social science and conservation issues and are also part of institutions and teams where interdisciplinary work is common practice. I have felt very well received and accompanied.”

Agustina’s project represents a vital step forward in addressing the complex issue of seabird bycatch in Argentine commercial fisheries. Her secondment not only contributes to the crucial field of seabird conservation but has also fostered cross-party collaboration, knowledge-sharing, and capacity-building within ACAP Parties. By combining scientific research with social sciences approaches, her project has the potential to drive positive change, promote sustainable practices, and enhance the conservation efforts of ACAP and its partners. 

08 November 2023

My colleague of near half a century, Peter Ryan, has produced a new edition of his popular 2017 photographic book, Guide to Seabirds of Southern Africa. With 40 more pages, the book is noticeably thicker than the first edition, but the same format will allow the two editions to sit nicely side by side in the seabird section of my study library. The publisher’s blurb has this to say:

“This revised, updated and expanded edition of Guide to Seabirds of Southern Africa remains the only book to focus exclusively on the seabirds of southern Africa and includes nine new species for the region.  An expanded introduction covering seabird origins, moult, feeding, breeding, conservation, and how best to watch and photograph these iconic birds [and] a bonus feature on flying fish and flying squid”. Worthy of a new review then, following on from my original in ACAP Latest News in April 2017.

Ryan#2 covers 142 seabird species which have been recorded (by specimens, accepted sightings, photographs or by tracking) in southern African waters and in the Southern Ocean and its oceanic islands south of Africa.  It is always tricky to decide what birds associated with the marine environment to include.  Peter takes what is perhaps a conservative view: there are no pelicans or grebes included, despite there being records of species of both groups, notably of the Great White Pelican Pelecanus onocrotalus and Black-necked Grebe Podiceps nigricollis, occuring pretty regularly close inshore in South African and Namibian waters, mainly in sheltered bays. This contrasts with Peter Harrison's seabirds of the world book where both groups are included.  I reviewed the second editIon of Harrison's book in an ACAP Monthly Missive earlier this year.  However, Peter Ryan does include some "marginal' seabirds among the cormorants, gulls and terns.  At least, unlike Harrison, who gives it a truncated account, he leaves out the Lesser Sheathbill Chionis minor of the Prince Edward Islands, a bird I know reasonably well, and one that at best is a shorebird that sometimes fossicks along the waters' edge. Really, there is no completely logical way in making the divide between sea and land! 

The next albatross for southern Africa?  An adult Antipodean Albatross off North Cape, New Zealand, photograph by Kirk Zufelt

The nine new species since Ryan#1 (I had to carefully compare the two editions to find them) include the ACAP-listed Campbell Albatross Thalassarche impavida, a New Zealand endemic, known so far from only a single tracked adult south of Africa that was undergoing a circumnavigation of the Southern Ocean. Among the procellariiforms, the Mascarene Pseudobulweria atterima and the Tahiti P. rostrata Petrels are also new listings. Looking at coverage, there are many new photos adding to the book’s length. For example, the section on the six species of prions Pachyptila spp. has increased from four to seven pages, affording each species a full page with more photos in the second edition.

There have been some name changes as well, reflecting new taxonomic thinking. The rockhopper penguins of the Prince Edward Islands are now considered to be the Eastern species Eudyptes filholi, and no longer a subspecies of the Southern E. chrysocome. In contrast, and unlike ACAP’s and BirdLife International’s treatments, the White-capped Albatross T. steadi remains as a subspecies of the Shy Albatross T. cauta across both editions. No less than 18 of the 22 species of albatrosses recognized by ACAP have been recorded in waters covered by the guide, some only as very rare vagrants. Three of the four Phoebastria albatrosses of the Pacific and the New Zealand endemic Antipodean Albatross Diomedea antipodensis are missing. I was lucky enough to be shown at sea the first ever and perhaps the only Laysan Albatross P. immutabilis to be spotted in the southern African region by Peter Harrison on our way to Marion Island way back on 29 April 1983 (click here). The Antipodean seems the most likely to turn up, but it is notoriously difficult to separate with any certainty from several of the other great albatrosses when sighted at sea, especially from the Tristan Albatross D. dabbenena. So it may have to be a tracked bird to make Ryan#3!  Two of the five ACAP-listed Procellaria petrels, both endemic to New Zealand, have not yet been recorded in southern African waters. They are the Black. P. parkinsoni and the Westland P. westlandica. The only other ACAP-listed species not yet recorded for southern Africa is the Pink-footed Shearwater Ardenna creatopus of the South Pacific. Remarkably then, 24 of the 31 ACAP-listed species are featured in Peter Ryan’s guide.

It's way back in 1984 and the ‘Fitztitute’ team is hamming it up for the camera on Gough Island. Peter is on the left, I am on the right, with Barry Watkins, Stevi Broni and the late Jim Enticott

Intriguingly, the new edition includes some non-avian flying animals. The ommastrephid flying squid Peter has photographed have yet to be identified to species; likewise he has photographed many varieties of flying fish, all of the family Exoceotidae, also without being able to assign them to species. Some of them are remarkably colourful and handsome. I learnt a deal more than I already knew about these little-studied animals from the five pages of text and photos. No bats seen flying over the sea as yet!

The font used throughout both editions is a rather a small one. I had no problem with this back in 2017, but this year I have dumped my long-worn multifocals after cataract operations and am now struggling to read the text without resorting to a magnifying glass under a bright light! I have resisted getting reading glasses since the operation on medical advice but may now have to give in. On the plus side, the small font and small maps and equally small but well-chosen photos keep the book a suitable size for field work. In fact, it should fit into one of those cargo pockets on the hiking vests some birders like to wear.

Ryan#2 keeps the book’s dedication to myself as a footnote on its title page and a generous mention in the acknowledgements, for which I remain most grateful and not a little proud. Since 2017 Peter has moved from being Director of the University of Cape Town’s FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology to being an Emeritus Professor in the Institute, so joining me in retirement. We first met and went on sea and shorebird surveys together when he was still a schoolboy, and I was in my 20s. In between then and now we have visited and worked together on most of the oceanic islands covered in his guide. Good memories!

Reference:

Ryan P.[G.] 2023. Guide to Seabirds of Southern Africa. Second Edition. Cape Town: Struik Nature. 200 pp. ISBN 978-1-77584-847-9. Paperback, many photographic illustrations. South African Rands 270.00. www.struiknature.co.za.

John Cooper, Emeritus Information Officer, Agreement on the Conservation of Albatrosses and Petrels, 07 November 2023

Registration and abstract submission is now open for the 7^th International Albatross and Petrel Conference (IAPC7). The conference is being held 20 – 26 May 2024 in Ensenada, Baja California, Mexico.

The Agreement on the Conservation of Albatrosses and Petrels’ Executive Secretary, Dr Christine Bogle is a plenary speaker at the conference and will be presenting on the Agreement and its achievements as it celebrates its 20^th anniversary next year. 

Since 1995, the International Albatross and Petrel Conference has brought together the global procellariform community, and IAPC7 is set to be another stellar event involving plenary talks by keynote speakers, daily presentations covering diverse topics, and a dynamic poster session. 

Suggested topics for abstract submissions can be found at the conference website. Any questions about the process can be directed to the IAPC7 Scientific Program Chair This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Travel awards are also available to eligible applicants. The deadline for abstract submissions and travel award applications is 1 February 2024. 

To register for the event and find out more information about IAPC7, head to the conference website, here.

06 November 2023