Phoebetria palpebrata

Taxonomy

Assessment Information

Geographic Range

Population

Habitat and Ecology

Threats

Conservation Actions

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Taxonomy [top]

Kingdom	Phylum	Class	Order	Family
ANIMALIA	CHORDATA	AVES	PROCELLARIIFORMES	DIOMEDEIDAE

Scientific Name:

Phoebetria palpebrata

Species Authority:

(Forster, 1785)

Common Name/s:

English	–	Light-mantled Albatross, Light-mantled Sooty Albatross
French	–	Albatros fuligineux

Assessment Information [top]

Red List Category & Criteria:

Near Threatened ver 3.1

Year Assessed:

2010

Assessor/s:

BirdLife International

Reviewer/s:

Calvert, R., Butchart, S., Bird, J.

Contributor/s:

Robertson, C., Walker, K., Phillips, R., Croxall, J., Ryan, P., Stahl, J., Taylor, G.

Justification:
This species is classified as Near Threatened as it may be declining at a moderately rapid rate, owing to bycatch on longline fisheries and perhaps the impacts of introduced predators. Threats and population status both remain poorly known.

History:

2008	–	Near Threatened
2005	–	Near Threatened
2004	–	Near Threatened
2003	–	Near Threatened

Geographic Range [top]

Range Description:	Phoebetria palpebrata has a circumpolar distribution in the Southern Ocean. It disperses over cold Antarctic waters in summer as far south as the pack ice¹² but ranges north into temperate and sub-tropical seas in winter. It breeds on South Georgia (Georgias del Sur), Auckland, Campbell and Antipodes islands (New Zealand), Amsterdam, St Paul, Crozet and Kerguelen islands (French Southern Territories), Heard Island (Heard and MacDonald Islands (to Australia)), Macquarie Island (Australia), and Prince Edward and Marion islands (South Africa). The total annual breeding population is estimated at 19,000-24,000 pairs, equivalent to 58,000 mature individuals in this biennially breeding species^1,4. Population trends are poorly known. On Possession Island (Crozet), there has been a decline of 13% in 15 years⁵, though the population is now increasing¹⁴. The small population on Marion Island appears to now be stable, following a decrease between 1997-2002³. Overall trends are uncertain as the majority of colonies have not been studied, but may be declining owing to bycatch on longline fisheries, plus perhaps the impacts of introduced predators at some sites.
Countries:	Native: Antarctica; Argentina; Australia; Chile; Falkland Islands (Malvinas); French Southern Territories (the); Heard Island and McDonald Islands; New Zealand; South Africa; South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands; United States; United States; United States; United States; United States; United States; United States; United States; United States Vagrant: Brazil; French Polynesia; Mauritius Present - origin uncertain: Bouvet Island
Range Map:	Click here to open the map viewer and explore range.

Population [top]

Population:	Information on population status and trend is most well known on Possession Island (Crozet Islands), where there were 996 pairs in 1995. Elsewhere, there are estimated to be >1,400 pairs on other islands in the Crozet group, 5,000-7,500 pairs on South Georgia, 3,000-5,000 pairs on Kerguelen, c. 5,000 pairs on the Auckland Islands, 2,000 pairs on Macquarie Island, at least 1,600 pairs on Campbell Island, 170 pairs on the Antipodes Islands, 200-500 pairs on Heard Island (Croxall and Gales 1998; Taylor 2000), and 179 pairs on Marion Island and 150 pairs on Prince Edward Island (Crawford et al. 2003). The global population is therefore an estimated 19,000-24,000 pairs - Croxall and Gales (1998) estimated c. 21,600 pairs.
Population Trend:	Decreasing

Population:

Information on population status and trend is most well known on Possession Island (Crozet Islands), where there were 996 pairs in 1995. Elsewhere, there are estimated to be >1,400 pairs on other islands in the Crozet group, 5,000-7,500 pairs on South Georgia, 3,000-5,000 pairs on Kerguelen, c. 5,000 pairs on the Auckland Islands, 2,000 pairs on Macquarie Island, at least 1,600 pairs on Campbell Island, 170 pairs on the Antipodes Islands, 200-500 pairs on Heard Island (Croxall and Gales 1998; Taylor 2000), and 179 pairs on Marion Island and 150 pairs on Prince Edward Island (Crawford et al. 2003). The global population is therefore an estimated 19,000-24,000 pairs - Croxall and Gales (1998) estimated c. 21,600 pairs.

Population Trend:

Decreasing

Habitat and Ecology [top]

Habitat and Ecology:	Behaviour This species is a biennial breeder usually nesting solitarily or in small colonies. Most eggs are laid in October-November, hatch in December-January and chicks fledge in May-June¹. Egg laying is highly synchronous within each colony. Young birds are philopatric, returning to their natal colonies after 7 to 12 years¹⁵. Breeding birds from Macquarie Island typically forage in shelf waters around the island; they also utilise sub-Antarctic and Antarctic waters south-west of Macquarie⁶. During chick-rearing, adults from South Georgia feed in Antarctic shelf and shelf-slope areas along the southern Scotia Arc and to a lesser extent in oceanic waters in the mid Scotia Sea⁹. It employs a variety of feeding strategies, including surface-seizing, surface filtering and plunging. Habitat Breeding It nests on cliff ledges, on a pedestal nest of mud and peat, lined with grass. Diet The diet is primarily composed of cephalopods and euphausiids, but birds also take fish and carrion^{7, 10}. Foraging range Five satellite-tracked incubating birds from Macquarie Island foraged south of the Antarctic Polar Front, an average of 1,500 km from their breeding sites. Four breeding birds from South Georgia (Islas Georgias del Sur) followed a typical flight path (38 trips) involving a clockwise route to and from high latitude waters along the southern Scotia Arc, on average travelling 3,800 km, to a maximum range of 920 km from the colony¹⁵.
Systems:	Terrestrial; Marine

Habitat and Ecology:

Behaviour This species is a biennial breeder usually nesting solitarily or in small colonies. Most eggs are laid in October-November, hatch in December-January and chicks fledge in May-June¹. Egg laying is highly synchronous within each colony. Young birds are philopatric, returning to their natal colonies after 7 to 12 years¹⁵. Breeding birds from Macquarie Island typically forage in shelf waters around the island; they also utilise sub-Antarctic and Antarctic waters south-west of Macquarie⁶. During chick-rearing, adults from South Georgia feed in Antarctic shelf and shelf-slope areas along the southern Scotia Arc and to a lesser extent in oceanic waters in the mid Scotia Sea⁹. It employs a variety of feeding strategies, including surface-seizing, surface filtering and plunging. Habitat Breeding It nests on cliff ledges, on a pedestal nest of mud and peat, lined with grass. Diet The diet is primarily composed of cephalopods and euphausiids, but birds also take fish and carrion^{7, 10}. Foraging range Five satellite-tracked incubating birds from Macquarie Island foraged south of the Antarctic Polar Front, an average of 1,500 km from their breeding sites. Four breeding birds from South Georgia (Islas Georgias del Sur) followed a typical flight path (38 trips) involving a clockwise route to and from high latitude waters along the southern Scotia Arc, on average travelling 3,800 km, to a maximum range of 920 km from the colony¹⁵.

Systems:

Terrestrial; Marine

Threats [top]

Major Threat(s):	Reports from New Zealand, Australia and Japan indicate that it is caught in tuna longline fisheries (39 returned from observers in New Zealand fisheries in 1996-2005, but only three since 1996)¹¹, although data on bycatch are sparse compared to other albatross species. Introduced predators are present at all New Zealand colonies except Campbell Island and they may affect breeding success and colony distribution⁴. Cats also affect breeding success on the Kerguelen Islands¹⁵.

Major Threat(s):

Reports from New Zealand, Australia and Japan indicate that it is caught in tuna longline fisheries (39 returned from observers in New Zealand fisheries in 1996-2005, but only three since 1996)¹¹, although data on bycatch are sparse compared to other albatross species. Introduced predators are present at all New Zealand colonies except Campbell Island and they may affect breeding success and colony distribution⁴. Cats also affect breeding success on the Kerguelen Islands¹⁵.

Conservation Actions [top]

Conservation Actions:	Conservation Actions Underway CMS Appendix II and ACAP Annex 1. Conservation Actions Proposed Conduct standardised population surveys at all key sites. Determine foraging distribution and overlap with fisheries. As a precaution, eradicate introduced predators at breeding sites.

Conservation Actions:

Conservation Actions Underway
CMS Appendix II and ACAP Annex 1.

Conservation Actions Proposed
Conduct standardised population surveys at all key sites. Determine foraging distribution and overlap with fisheries. As a precaution, eradicate introduced predators at breeding sites.

Citation:	BirdLife International 2010. Phoebetria palpebrata. In: IUCN 2011. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2011.2. <www.iucnredlist.org>. Downloaded on 04 February 2012.
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