Snowy albatross | |
---|---|
Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Aves |
Order: | Procellariiformes |
Family: | Diomedeidae |
Genus: | Diomedea |
Species: | D. exulans |
Binomial name | |
Diomedea exulans | |
Synonyms | |
Diomedea chionoptera |
The snowy albatross (Diomedea exulans), also known as the white-winged albatross, wandering albatross, or goonie, is a large seabird from the family Diomedeidae; they have a circumpolar range in the Southern Ocean. It is the most recently described species of albatross and was long considered to be the same species as the Tristan albatross and the Antipodean albatross. Together with the Amsterdam albatross, it forms the wandering albatross species complex. When the complex was split into four species, the English name of the nominate form was changed from wandering albatross to snowy albatross.
The snowy albatross is one of the two largest members of the genus Diomedea (the great albatrosses), being similar in size to the southern royal albatross. It has the greatest known wingspan of any living bird and is also one of the most far-ranging birds. Some individual snowy albatrosses are known to circumnavigate the Southern Ocean three times in one year, covering more than 120,000 km (75,000 mi).
The snowy albatross was first described as Diomedea exulans by Carl Linnaeus in 1758, based on a specimen from the Cape of Good Hope. [3] Diomedea refers to Diomedes from Greek mythology whose companions turned to birds, and exulans or exsul are Latin for "exile" or "wanderer" referring to its extensive flights. [4] The type locality has been restricted to South Georgia. [5]
Some experts considered there to be four subspecies of D. exulans, which they elevated to species status, and use the term wandering albatross to refer to a species complex that includes the proposed species D. antipodensis , D. dabbenena , D. exulans, and D. gibsoni. [6]
The plumage varies with age, with the juveniles starting chocolate brown. As they age they become whiter. [3] The adults have white bodies with black and white wings. Males have whiter wings than females, with just the tips and trailing edges of the wings black. The snowy albatross is the whitest of the wandering albatross species complex, the other species having a great deal more brown and black on the wings and body, very closely resembling immature wandering albatrosses. The large bill is pink, as are the feet. [7] They also have a salt gland that is situated above the nasal passage and helps desalinate their bodies, due to the high amount of ocean water that they imbibe. They excrete a high saline solution from their nose, which is a probable cause for the pink-yellow stain seen on some animals' necks. [8] [9]
The snowy albatross has the longest wingspan of any living bird, reaching upwards of 3.5 m (11 ft), [10] [11] with a mean span of 3.1 m (10 ft 2 in) in Bird Island, South Georgia. Wingspan measured an average of 3 m (9 ft 10 in) in 123 birds measured off the coast of Malabar, New South Wales. [3] [12] [13] On the Crozet Islands, adults averaged 3.05 m (10 ft 0 in) in wingspan. [14] The longest-winged specimens have been about 3.7 m (12 ft 2 in). [13] Two specimens have been reported having wingspans of 4.22 m (13 ft 10 in) and 5.3 m (17 ft 5 in), but these reports remain unverified. [13] As a result of its large wingspan, it is capable of remaining in the air without flapping its wings for several hours at a time (traveling 22m for every meter of drop). [15] The length of the body is about 107 to 135 cm (3 ft 6 in to 4 ft 5 in) [12] with females being slightly smaller than males. [16] [7]
Adults can weigh from 5.9 to 12.7 kg (13 to 28 lb), although most will weigh 6.35 to 11.91 kg (14.0 to 26.3 lb). [3] [13] [17] [18] On Macquarie Island, three males averaged 8.4 kg (19 lb) and three females averaged 6.2 kg (14 lb). [19] In parts of the Crozet Islands, males averaged 9.44 kg (20.8 lb) while females averaged 7.84 kg (17.3 lb). [14] However, 10 unsexed adults from the Crozet Islands averaged 9.6 kg (21 lb). [20] On South Georgia, 52 males were found to average 9.11 kg (20.1 lb) while 53 females were found to average 7.27 kg (16.0 lb). [21] On Île de la Possession, adult male snowy albatrosses averaged 10.92 kg (24.1 lb) while adult females averaged 8.87 kg (19.6 lb). [22] Another sampling of adult body masses from the same colony found males to average 11.09 kg (24.4 lb) and females to average 9.1 kg (20 lb). [23] Immature birds have been recorded weighing as much as 16.1 kg (35 lb) during their first flights (at which time they may still have fat reserves that will be shed as they continue to fly). [13] On South Georgia, fledglings were found to average 10.9 kg (24 lb). [24] Albatrosses from outside the "snowy" wandering albatross group (D. exulans) are smaller but are now generally deemed to belong to different species. [21] [25]
The snowy albatross breeds on South Georgia Island, Crozet Islands, Kerguelen Islands, Prince Edward Islands, and Macquarie Island, is seen feeding year-round off the Kaikōura Peninsula on the east coast of the South Island of New Zealand, [26] and ranges in all the southern oceans from 28° to 60°. [1] Some individual snowy albatrosses are known to circumnavigate the Southern Ocean three times, covering more than 120,000 km (75,000 mi), in one year. [27] Snowy albatrosses spend most of their life in flight, landing only to breed and feed. Distances traveled each year are difficult to measure, but one banded bird was recorded traveling 6,000 km (3,700 mi) in twelve days. [7] [28]
Snowy albatrosses travel vast distances to find food, [29] and tend to feed further out in open oceans and in colder waters further south, whereas other albatross such as the related royal albatross tend to forage in somewhat shallower waters and closer to continental shelves. [30] They feed at the surface, mainly during daylight hours, and are not well adapted for diving. [29] During flight, speeds of 135 km/h (84 mph) have been recorded. [11] They feed on cephalopods, small fish, and crustaceans. [3] [31] The species has been shown to be attracted to fishing vessels, foraging on bait, caught fish, and offal. [32] [33]
The snowy albatross mates for life and breeds every other year. [16] At breeding time they occupy loose colonies on isolated island groups in the Southern Ocean. When courting they will spread their wings, wave their heads, and rap their bills together while braying. [7] Wanderers have a large range of displays from screams and whistles to grunts and bill clapping. [3] They lay one egg that is white, with a few spots, and is about 10 cm (3.9 in) long. They lay between 10 December and 5 January. The nests are large bowls built of grassy vegetation and soil peat, [3] that is 1 meter wide at the base and half a meter wide at the apex. Incubation takes about 11 weeks and both parents are involved. [16] The 11-week incubation period is among the longest of any bird. [34] During the early stages of the chick's development, the parents take turns sitting on the nest while the other searches for food. Later, both adults search for food and visit the chick at irregular intervals. [35] Researchers previously assumed that chicks went without food for the whole winter after a weaning period of roughly 12 to 16 weeks. Later studies disproved this concept, as chicks were found to be feeding during this period. [36] They are a monogamous species, usually for life. Adolescents return to the colony within six years; however, they will not start breeding until 11 to 15 years. [12] About 31.5% of fledglings survive. [3] They can live for over 50 years. [37]
Sailors used to capture the birds for their long wing bones, from which they made tobacco pipe stems. The early explorers of the great Southern Sea were cheered by the companionship of the albatross in their dreary solitudes, and as shown in Coleridge's The Rime of the Ancient Mariner killing them was seen as extremely bad luck. The metaphor of "an albatross around his neck" also comes from the poem and indicates an unwanted burden causing anxiety or hindrance. In the days of sail the bird often accompanied ships for days, not merely following it, but wheeling in wide circles around it without ever being observed to land on the water. It continued its flight, apparently untired, in tempestuous as well as moderate weather. [38]
The Māori of New Zealand used albatrosses as a food source. They caught them using baited hooks. [39] Because the wing bones of albatross are light but very strong, Māori used them to make a number of different items including kōauau (flutes), [40] needles, tattooing chisel blades, [41] and barbs for fish hooks. [42]
The IUCN lists the snowy albatross as vulnerable status. [1] Adult mortality is 5% to 7.8% per year as of 2003. [3] It has an occurrence range of 64,700,000 km2 (25,000,000 sq mi), although its breeding range is only 1,900 km2 (730 sq mi). [7]
The biggest threat to their survival is that they are attracted by the bait for longline fishing and get caught in the same way as the fish; however, pollution is also taking a toll, mainly from plastics and abandoned fishing hooks. The CCAMLR has introduced measures to reduce bycatch of albatrosses around South Georgia by 99%, and other regional fishing commissions are taking similar measures to reduce fatalities. The Prince Edward Islands are a nature preserve, the Macquarie Islands are a World Heritage site, and large parts of the Crozet Islands and the Kerguelen Islands are nature reserves. [7]
Seabirds are birds that are adapted to life within the marine environment. While seabirds vary greatly in lifestyle, behaviour and physiology, they often exhibit striking convergent evolution, as the same environmental problems and feeding niches have resulted in similar adaptations. The first seabirds evolved in the Cretaceous period, and modern seabird families emerged in the Paleogene.
The black-browed albatross, also known as the black-browed mollymawk, is a large seabird of the albatross family Diomedeidae; it is the most widespread and common member of its family.
The king penguin is the second largest species of penguin, smaller, but somewhat similar in appearance to the emperor penguin. There are two subspecies, A. p. patagonicus and A. p. halli; patagonicus is found in the South Atlantic and halli in the South Indian Ocean and at Macquarie Island.
The macaroni penguin is a species of penguin found from the Subantarctic to the Antarctic Peninsula. One of six species of crested penguin, it is very closely related to the royal penguin, and some authorities consider the two to be a single species. It bears a distinctive yellow crest on its forehead. Its face and upperparts are black and sharply delineated from the white underparts. Adults weigh on average 5.5 kg (12 lb) and are 70 cm (28 in) in length. The male and female are similar in appearance; the male is slightly larger and stronger with a relatively larger bill. Like all penguins, it is flightless, with a streamlined body and wings stiffened and flattened into flippers for a marine lifestyle.
The Amsterdam albatross or Amsterdam Island albatross,, is a large albatross which breeds only on Amsterdam Island in the southern Indian Ocean. It was only described in 1983, and was thought by some researchers to be a subspecies of the wandering albatross, D. exulans. BirdLife International and the IOC recognize it as a species, James Clements does not, and the SACC has a proposal on the table to split the species. More recently, mitochondrial DNA comparisons between the Amsterdam albatross, the wandering albatross Diomedea exulans, the Antipodean albatross D. antipodensis and the Tristan albatross D. dabbenena, provide clear genetic evidence that the Amsterdam albatross is a separate species.
The grey-headed albatross also known as the gray-headed mollymawk, is a large seabird from the albatross family. It has a circumpolar distribution, nesting on isolated islands in the Southern Ocean and feeding at high latitudes, further south than any of the other mollymawks. Its name derives from its ashy-gray head, throat and upper neck.
The great albatrosses are seabirds in the genus Diomedea in the albatross family. The genus Diomedea formerly included all albatrosses except the sooty albatrosses, but in 1996 the genus was split, with the mollymawks and the North Pacific albatrosses both being elevated to separate genera.
The shy albatross, also known as shy mollymawk, is a medium-sized albatross that breeds on three remote islands off the coast of Tasmania, Australia, in the southern Indian Ocean. Its lifespan is about 60 years, and it has been seen as far afield as South Africa and the Pacific coast of the United States. As of June 2020, the species is listed as "Endangered" in Australia; there are thought to be 15,000 pairs of shy albatross left. It is Australia's only endemic albatross.
Buller's albatross or Buller's mollymawk, is a small mollymawk in the albatross family.
The Campbell albatross or Campbell mollymawk, is a medium-sized mollymawk in the albatross family. It breeds only on Campbell Island and the associated islet of Jeanette Marie, in a small New Zealand island group in the South Pacific. It is sometimes considered a subspecies of the black-browed albatross. It is a medium-sized black and white albatross with a pale yellow iris.
The Indian yellow-nosed albatross is a member of the albatross family, and is the smallest of the mollymawks. In 2004, BirdLife International split this species from the Atlantic yellow-nosed albatross; however Clements has not split it yet, and the SACC has not either, but recognises the need for a proposal.
The Antipodean albatross is a large seabird in the albatross family. Antipodean albatrosses are smaller than snowy albatrosses, and breed in predominantly brown plumage, but are otherwise difficult to distinguish from young snowy albatrosses.
The southern royal albatross or toroa, is a large seabird from the albatross family. At an average wingspan of above 3 m (9.8 ft), it is one of the two largest species of albatross, together with the wandering albatross. Recent studies indicate that the southern royal albatross may, on average, be somewhat larger than the wandering albatross in mass and have a similar wingspan, although other sources indicate roughly similar size for the two species and the wandering species may have a larger average wingspan in some colonies.
The Tristan albatross is a large seabird from the albatross family. One of the great albatrosses of the genus Diomedea, it was only widely recognised as a full species in 1998.
Albatrosses, of the biological family Diomedeidae, are large seabirds related to the procellariids, storm petrels, and diving petrels in the order Procellariiformes. They range widely in the Southern Ocean and the North Pacific. They are absent from the North Atlantic, although fossil remains of short-tailed albatross show they once lived there up to the Pleistocene, and occasional vagrants are found. Great albatrosses are among the largest of flying birds, with wingspans reaching up to 2.5–3.5 metres (8.2–11.5 ft) and bodies over 1 metre (3.3 ft) in length. The albatrosses are usually regarded as falling into four genera, but disagreement exists over the number of species.
The Southern Indian Ocean Islands tundra is a tundra ecoregion that includes several subantarctic islands in the southern Indian Ocean.
The term seabird is used for many families of birds in several orders that spend the majority of their lives at sea. Seabirds make up some, if not all, of the families in the following orders: Procellariiformes, Sphenisciformes, Pelecaniformes, and Charadriiformes. Many seabirds remain at sea for several consecutive years at a time, without ever seeing land. Breeding is the central purpose for seabirds to visit land. The breeding period is usually extremely protracted in many seabirds and may last over a year in some of the larger albatrosses; this is in stark contrast with passerine birds. Seabirds nest in single or mixed-species colonies of varying densities, mainly on offshore islands devoid of terrestrial predators. However, seabirds exhibit many unusual breeding behaviors during all stages of the reproductive cycle that are not extensively reported outside of the primary scientific literature.
Gibson's Albatross, also known as the Auckland Islands wandering albatross or Gibson's wandering albatross, is a large seabird in the great albatross group of the albatross family. It is found principally in the Auckland Islands archipelago of New Zealand, foraging in the Tasman Sea, with most individuals nesting on Adams Island. The common name and trinomial commemorate John Douglas Gibson, an Australian amateur ornithologist who studied albatrosses off the coast of New South Wales for thirty years.
The New South Wales Albatross Study Group (NSWASG) was an amateur ornithological fieldwork group that banded albatrosses and other seabirds off the coast of eastern New South Wales, Australia. Primarily targeting winter feeding aggregations of wandering albatrosses near Sydney, it developed its own catching methods and initiated what has become the longest-running continuous albatross research study in the world.
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