North Pacific Research Board Project Synopsis

AT SEA, AND IN DANGER (USFWS) PROJECT Once abundant throughout the North Pacific, the short-tailed (Phoebastria albatrus) popula- tion was driven to near extinction in the early twen- The Big Picture 322 tieth century, and is listed as Endangered throughout its range in the North Pacific. The spend time on In Alaska, short-tailed CONTINUED AS land—on just two small islands off the coast of Japan— had the 532 only during the breeding season, and we know little greatest potential overlap about their distribution in Alaska waters. Conservation with fisheries occurring in SPATIAL AND efforts have historically focused on protecting rooker- TEMPORAL ies and nesting habitats from human impact. However, continental shelf break and INTERACTIONS because the birds spend most of their life at sea, they slope habitats. Those that appear susceptible to fisheries thousands of miles away BETWEEN frequent the Bering Sea ENDANGERED SHORT- from breeding islands. shelf have the potential for TAILED ALBATROSSES WHY WE DID IT AND NORTH PACIFIC interactions with the large- Short-tailed albatross have been killed in commercial fish- scale pollock and Pacific cod COMMERCIAL ing gear in Alaska, and Alaska’s longline and trawl fisheries FISHERIES operate under Endangered Act incidental take limits fisheries. Wind speed and for this species. To help with fishery management and spe- ocean primary productivity FUNDING SUMMARY cies conservation, we sought to better understand albatross (chlorophyll ‘a’ concentration) Principal Investigators distribution and marine habitat use through satellite telem- etry—technology that allows measurement and reporting of are also good predictors of Rob Suryan Oregon State University data from remote locations. albatross residence time in different areas. Greg Balogh Prior to this study, our knowledge of where short-tailed U.S. Fish & Wildlife albatross occurred at sea was limited to vessel-based obser- Service vations, which can present a biased representation of the ’s range. Satellite telemetry would yield unbiased distri- Ed Melvin University of Washington bution data and would give insights into what constitutes Sea Grant good albatross habitat, as well as when and where inter- actions with commercial fisheries would be most likely Graham Robertson to occur. Australian Antarctic Division HOW WE DID IT Year Funded We captured birds onshore at a breeding colony in 2003 Japan, and at sea in the Aleutian Islands. To the back feathers of the birds we attached satellite tags, Research Period which would fall off after molting. We then inte- May 2003– grated albatross tracking with remotely sensed September 2005 environmental data obtained from satellites. Budget $92,027 WHAT WE DISCOVERED In Alaska, short-tailed albatrosses had the greatest potential overlap with sable- fish and other fisheries occurring in RESEARCH THEME (Continued) NPRB’S VISION We’re committed to building a clear understanding of the North Pacific, Bering Sea and Arctic Ocean ecosystems that enables effective management and sustainable use of marine resources.

WHY NPRB FUNDED THIS PROJECT bycatch has become a conservation issue for many

Flight paths of short-tailed albatrosses satellite-tracked from the breeding colony on Torishima, Japan (n = 11) imperiled species. Endangered and Seguam Pass, Alaska (n = 3, captured at-sea). Individuals were tracked May–November 2002 and 2003. short-tailed albatross in Alaska frequent waters also targeted by continental shelf break and slope habitats. Some birds, however, also traveled frequently commercial fisheries. By revealing onto the Bering Sea shelf, suggesting significant potential interactions with the large- how birds overlap with fisheries, our scale pollock and Pacific cod fisheries. Alaskan longline fishing fleets use seabird deter- work will help mitigate potentially rent devices; however, our results support the need for such efforts to be more widespread deadly interactions, and ensure that among regions and nations. We also discovered that wind speed and ocean primary pro- Alaska’s fisheries remain among ductivity (chlorophyll a concentration) were good predictors of albatross residence time in different areas. the most seabird-safe commercial fisheries in the world. WHAT’S NEXT? We continued this research as NPRB Project 532 and spent two years tag- ging all three species of North Pacific albatross—short-tailed, black-footed (P. nigripes) and Laysan (P. immutabilis)—at sea and analyzing their move- ments relative to wind direction and speed, oceanic currents, seafloor topography, and oceanic productivity. Analyses will include evaluation of species-specific overlap with commercial fisheries within and outside Alaska.

OUTREACH See project final report for additional outreach details. Publications Greg Balogh, Graham Robertson and Ed Melvin attach a satellite transmitter to the back feathers •• Suryan, R.M., F. Sato, G. Balogh, K.D. Hyrenbach, P. Sievert, and K. Ozaki. 2006. Foraging of a short-tailed albatross. The transmitter will destinations and marine habitat use of short-tailed albatrosses: a multi-scale approach fall off when the bird molts. (Rob Suryan) using first-passage time analysis. Deep-Sea Research II 53:370-386. •• Suryan, R.M., K.S. Dietrich, E.F. Melvin, G.R. Balogh, F. Sato, K. Ozaki. 2007. Migratory routes of short-tailed albatrosses: Use of exclusive economic zones of North Pacific Rim coun- tries and spatial overlap with commercial fisheries in Alaska. Biological Conservation 137:450-460. Presentations •• We have presented our research more than 30 times in 17 different cities in the United States, Canada, Japan, South Africa, Mexico and Uruguay, from high school ornithology classes to international conferences. Website •• The Albatross Project website is www.wfu.edu/albatross/shorttail.htm

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