Category: Diomedeidae

Red List for Birds 2013: Number of Critically Endangered birds hits new high

The number of bird species listed as Critically Endangered has reached an all-time high with the release of this year’s Red List for birds by BirdLife International. White-winged Flufftail Sarothrura ayresi, a secretive and unobtrusive sub-Saharan bird, is the latest species to join the growing list of those on the very edge of extinction. Destruction […]

Extra-pair paternity in the strongly monogamousWandering AlbatrossDiomedea exulanshas noapparent benefits for females

Wandering Albatross (Diomedea exulans) Science Article 17 abstract Although 92% of avian species are socially monogamous, extra-pair copulation (EPC),resulting in extra-pair paternity (EPP), is a common reproductive strategy in birds. Amongseabirds, in which the rate of social monogamy reaches 100%, Procellariiformes (albatrossesand petrels) show low EPP rates, with the noticeable exception of the only albatross […]

Ten polymorphic microsatellite markers in the wanderingalbatrossDiomedea exulans

Wandering Albatross (Diomedea exulans) Science Article 4 abstract We describe 10 new variable dinucleotide microsatellites in the wandering albatrossDiomedea exulans, as well as conditions for multiplexing and simultaneous genotypingsets of loci. Their variability was assessed in two and one populations from the Crozet andKerguelen archipelagos (southern Indian Ocean), respectively. Two to 13 alleles weredetected per […]

Age-related mate choice in the wandering albatross

Wandering Albatross (Diomedea exulans) Science Article 12 abstract We studied mate choice in the wandering albatross, Diomedea exulans, using data from 32 years of banding returns in the population of the Crozet Islands. We studied mating choices in a single year, when the Crozet Islands population was male biased (8:5, males:females). Thus, we expected that […]

When do wandering albatrosses Diomedea exulans forage?

Wandering Albatross (Diomedea exulans) Science Article 3 abstract Five free-living wandering albatrosses Diomedea exulans were fitted with stomach temperature sensors to detect when birds fed. Three birds went to sea for a total of 24 dduring which time they ingested 159 prey items which were calculated to have a total mass of 45.65 kg. These […]

Activity pattern of foraging in the wandering albatross: a marine predator with twomodes of prey searching

Wandering Albatross (Diomedea exulans) Science Article 15 abstract The foraging activity of wandering albatrosses Diomedea exulans was studied with simultaneous use of satellite transmitters, activity recorders and loggers measuring the timing of feeding. On average birds spent 60% of their foraging time in flight, mostly during the day, and 40% on the water, mainly at […]

POTENTIAL INTERACTIONS BETWEEN WANDERING ALBATROSSES AND LONGLINE FISHERIES FOR PATAGONIAN TOOTHFISH AT SOUTH GEORGIA

Wandering Albatross (Diomedea exulans) Science Article 10 abstract We examine the extent of overlap between South Georgia wandering albatrosses(Diomedea exulans) and local longline fishing for Patagonian toothfish (Dissostichuseleginoides), using satellite-tracking data and precise haul locations, respectively. Weconclude that D. exulans breeding at South Georgia have a relatively low potential riskof interaction with longline fisheries around […]

Heart rate and energy expenditure of incubating wandering albatrosses: basallevels, natural variation, and the effects of human disturbance

Wandering Albatross (Diomedea exulans) Science Article 13 abstract We studied the changes in heart rate (HR) associated with metabolic rate of incubating and resting adult wandering albatrosses (Diomedea exulans) on the Crozet Islands. Metabolic rates of resting albatrosses fitted with external HR recorders were measured in a metabolicchamber to calibrate the relationship between HR and […]

Population changes and biology of the wandering albatross Diomedea exulans gibsoni at the Auckland Islands

Wandering Albatross (Diomedea exulans) Science Article 6 abstract Gibson’s wandering albatross Diomedea exulans gibsoni is endemic to the Auckland Islands in the New Zealand subantarctic. In 1991 a programme of regular census and population study was initiated to assess the impact of longline fisheries bycatch on the status of the subspecies. This paper reports on […]