In Defense of Life: The Albatross

Nineteen of the twenty one species of Albatross recognized by the IUCN are red listed as threatened, the three most critically endangered species being the Amsterdam, Tristan, and Waved Albatross.

Albatrosses are sea birds that frequent remote islands in colonies during times of breeding and chick rearing. Most of their life, however, is spent at sea. Using wingspans measuring up to twelve feet for some species makes life at sea a breeze as specialized gliding techniques allows the birds flight for hours expending very little muscular effort.

Slow rate of reproduction (1 chick per every 1-2 years) coupled long lifespans (up to 50 years and beyond) as well as over fishing are the main culprits of the Albatrosses endangerment. As birds of prey, albatrosses are frequently killed while hunting due to being snagged to hooks from fishing boats, confusing the fisherman’s bates for food. “Bycatch” drowns many birds as a result.

New fishing methods involve new hooks to prevent birds from snatching bait off of hooks before they are submerged in the waves.

Introduced species also pose a threat to the Albatrosses on the remote islands where they mate and roost. Rats and rabbits make quite a destructive team, as they are known to do, the former preying on the birds eggs and the latter destroying nesting sites with burrows.

The most concerning of all, however, is an issue whose destruction is more far reaching and pervasive than its effect on individual wildlife species like the Albatross.

This is one of the most concerning issues of our era and promises to impact every species on Earth in given time.

The North Pacific Gyre is an area of particularly high concentrations of waste and plastic. It is also known as the Pacific Trash Vortex. It is, like the name suggests, a vortex created by a northern clockwise and southern counter clockwise rotation of winds and currents. It is here where debris and human waste are caught and collected, concentrating to above lethal amounts in the slow moving center.

The North Pacific Gyre is one of 5 major ocean gyres worldwide, all believed to contain concentrated levels of plastic debris.

Why is this so concerning? This ocean “garbage island” is not visible from satellite. It is not an immediately visible patch of floating trash like the nickname would suggest, and large pieces of debris are seldom visible even to passing sea craft. Estimations of size are difficult to make as there are many complexities involved with sampling water content (It is my opinion that efforts to analyze and improve our current sampling methods should be increased immediately to make the urgency of this issue more tangible.)

Albatross Distribution

Ocean Gyres

The gyre contains an extremely concentrated amount of pelagic plastic substances, as well as countless other types of waste. Plastics are a main concern due to their properties of decomposition. After the plastics are caught and collected in this ocean vortex they proceed to break down into trillions of microscopic pieces and are reduced to polymers. It is through local fish and bird populations that these toxic compounds enter the food chain. Young Albatrosses are, sadly, a common victim to either chocking or poising from plastic substances they are fed by their parents, mistaken for harmless food. Many also die from starvation as a result of the blockages created by accumulated plastics inside of the young birds. Graphic images which may (and should) be upsetting to follow...

Please view Chris' full set here.

These compounds have their most immediate and disastrous effects on marine ecosystems and on species such as the albatross, but the impact is in no way isolated. Reports of the toxic chemicals’ effects have been recorded in human populations as well, by way of sea food.

We are no exception to the process of bio-accumulation which is the main threat to the Albatross as well as much of marine life in general, and by way of the food chain, all life on land as well. Awareness of Albatross endangerment, consequently, requires increased and expanded awareness of extreme (and entirely preventable) human waste.

A game plan to conserve the Albatross, and every other endangered marine species, depends on increase social awareness of the impact of our plastic and chemical waste.

Organizations such as Bird Life International have been battling threats such as long line fishing, invasive species, and pollution through its global nature conservation partnership. Special initiatives and tasks force focus on marine birds especially, acknowledging them as the most threatened group in the globe.

Learn more about albatrosses and Bird Life International's sea bird initiatives:

http://www.birdlife.org/worldwide/programmes/marine

http://www.birdlife.org/datazone/sowbsearchresults.php?a=ns&SearchTerms=albatross