Endangered Albatross
Albatrosses Face a Number of Threats, but the Worst is Long-line Fishing
Dec 8, 2006 Rosemary Drisdelle
Far out at sea, a Wandering Albatross spots a piece of squid drifting near the ocean surface. The bird dives for the food, but instead of swallowing a nutritious morsel, it discovers that the squid hides a sharp fish hook. The hook catches on the bird’s beak, or in its throat or stomach, and in a moment the captured albatross is dragged under the surface and pulled through the water on a long-line. It is utterly helpless and cannot regain the surface. The albatross is dead long before anyone notices it is there at all. According to Bird Life International, this scenario plays out in the southern oceans every five minutes
The threat from fishing
Long-line fishing boats put out lines containing thousands of baited hooks that trail behind the boats for up to 100 kilometers (62 miles). When an albatross goes after a piece of fish, the boat that is dragging it may be completely out of sight. Usually it is visible, however, because the lines and bait are closer to the surface directly behind the boat. To make matters worse, albatrosses commonly follow ships at sea because they know that where there is a ship, there is often food. Long-lines are baited to catch large ocean fish like tuna, swordfish, and Patagonian toothfish. Unfortunately, they also catch a lot of albatrosses – tens of thousands each year.
Because the birds breed slowly, the high mortality due to long-line fishing is a serious threat to their survival. More birds are being killed than are born and raised each year. The bird pulled under and drowned isn’t just an albatross that will never breed again: it may well be an albatross that is hunting for food for a hungry chick. That chick will die in the nest if the parent bird does not return.
Other threats
Other threats to albatrosses include ocean pollution, floating garbage (which they swallow), and loss of breeding sites. Historically albatrosses were the focus of egg collecting and harvested for feathers (for beds and clothes) and bones (for pipes). Today, the Chatham Albatross and the Amsterdam Albatross are critically endangered, and of the 21 species of albatross known, only two are not threatened with extinction.
Sources:
Bird Life International and the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds. "Save the Albatross: The Race is On"
Christopher Perrins ed. Firefly Encyclopedia of Birds. New York: Firefly. 2003
Related content:
Conservation Status of Species
Wandering Albatross
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