Fisheries Management - Information Bulletins
Information Bulletin 01-55 Sustainable Fisheries Division 907-586-7228 |
June 5, 2001 3:00 p.m. |
NMFS Reports on the Current Breeding Status of the Endangered Short-Tailed Albatross In continued efforts to share useful information and outreach material about seabirds that are known to interact with the longline fisheries off Alaska, the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) is relaying the following information on the current breeding status of the endangered short-tailed albatross (Phoebastria albatrus), according to James W. Balsiger, Administrator, Alaska Region, NMFS. "In the early March of this year, I visited Minami-kojima [25?56' N, 123?42'E] in the Senkaku Islands helped by a helicopter of the Asahi Shimbun Newspaper. We camped one night on that island and confirmed 24 chicks and a total of 79 adult/immature birds there. Apparently, the population has been increasing since the number of chicks was at least 7 in the 1987-88 season, and 10 in 1990-91, 11 in 1991-92 at my previous visits. I guess that there would be about 40 nesting pairs (about 170 individuals including pre-breeders) in the Senkaku Islands. So, the estimated total population would be about 200 birds (that is 170 birds plus 24 chicks that must have fledged).NMFS strives to work proactively in its efforts to reduce seabird bycatch in longline fisheries. Efforts to date have involved collaborations with: scientists, fishers, longline vessel associations, environmental advocates, national and international agencies and organizations and other interested members of the public. See http://www.fakr.noaa.gov/protectedresources/seabirds.html for additional information about these efforts, or contact Kim Rivera at 907-586-7424 or Kim.Rivera@noaa.gov. |