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Phoebastria nigripes
– Endangered
Taxonomy
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Kingdom:
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ANIMALIA
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Phylum:
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CHORDATA
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Class:
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AVES
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Order:
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PROCELLARIIFORMES
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Family:
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DIOMEDEIDAE
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Scientific Name:
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Phoebastria nigripes
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Species Authority:
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(Audubon, 1849)
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Common Name/s:
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| English | — | BLACK-FOOTED ALBATROSS |
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Assessment Information
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Red List Category & Criteria:
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EN A3bd ver 3.1 (2001)
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Year Assessed:
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2005
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Assessor/s:
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BirdLife International
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Evaluator/s:
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Butchart, S., Stattersfield, A. (BirdLife International Red List Authority), Sullivan, B. (BirdLife International Global Seabirds Programme) & Croxall, J. (British Antarctic Survey)
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Justification:
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This species is listed to Endangered on the basis of a projected future decline of more than 60% over the next three generations (56 years), taking account of present rates of incidental mortality in longline fisheries in the north Pacific Ocean.
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History:
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| 1988 | - | Lower Risk/least concern (BirdLife International 2004) |
| 1994 | - | Lower Risk/least concern (BirdLife International 2004) |
| 2000 | - | Vulnerable (BirdLife International 2000) |
| 2003 | - | Endangered (IUCN 2003) |
| 2004 | - | Endangered (BirdLife International 2004) |
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Geographic Range
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Range Description:
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Phoebastria nigripes breeds on the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands (USA), the US Minor Outlying Islands and three outlying islands of Japan, colonies having been lost from other Pacific islands3,14. In 2000, the population was estimated at 109,000 breeding birds (278,000 total) at 12 localities, including c.23,000 and 20,500 pairs on Laysan and Midway Islands, respectively4,13. On Torishima, 20 chicks were reared in 1964, compared to 914 from 1,219 pairs in 19984. Monitoring data from three colonies in Hawaii, where over 75% of the world's population nests, suggests that numbers may have decreased by 9.6% from 1992 to 200113,16. Population models predict that under a moderate bycatch scenario (assuming 8,000 birds are taken Pacific-wide) this species will experience a 60% decrease in numbers over the next three generations if bycatch mortality is not reduced through mitigation measures over this time period15. (With the uptake of mitigation measures in the North Pacific, the projected decline of this species requires on-going monitoring). The species disperses widely over the north Pacific Ocean, with occasional records in the Southern Hemisphere2,19.
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Countries:
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Native:
Canada; China; Guam; Japan; Korea, Republic of; Marshall Islands; Mexico; Micronesia, Federated States of; Northern Mariana Islands; Russian Federation; Taiwan, Province of China; United States (Hawaiian Is.); United States Minor Outlying Islands (Midway Is.)
Vagrant:
New Zealand
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FAO Marine Fishing Areas:
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Native:
Pacific-eastern central; Pacific-northeast; Pacific-northwest; Pacific-western central
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Population
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Population Trend:
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Habitat and Ecology
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Habitat and Ecology:
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It breeds on beaches and slopes with little or no vegetation, and on short turf. It feeds mainly on fish, squid, flying fish ova and crustaceans9, but also fish offal and human refuse3.
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System:
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Terrestrial; Marine
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List of Habitats:
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| 10.1 | Marine Oceanic - Epipelagic (0-200m) |
| 12.2 | Marine Intertidal - Sandy Shoreline and/or Beaches, Sand Bars, Spits, Etc |
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Threats
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Threats:
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From 1978-1992, it experienced mortality from interactions with high seas drift-nets in the north Pacific11. Bycatch estimates from driftnets put yearly bycatch (at least in 1990) at c.4,000 birds per year. Currently, it interacts with longline fisheries and mortality is thought to be at least 2,000 birds per year in US-based fisheries and a further 6,000 in Japanese/Taiwanese fleets15. This is supprted by a pilot study showing that post-breeding birds disperse over large distances to the oceanographic 'tranisition zone' where they are susceptible to bycatch in the US and foreign pelagic longline fleets18,19. Other threats include loss of nests to waves5, pollution1,12, introduced predators10, oiling, plastic ingestion and volcanic eruption on Torishima8.
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List of Threats:
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| 2.2 | Invasive alien species (directly affecting the species) - Predators (ongoing) |
| 3.1.2 | Harvesting (hunting/gathering) - Food - Sub-national/national trade (past) |
| 3.5.3 | Harvesting (hunting/gathering) - Cultural/scientific/leisure activities - Regional/international trade (past) |
| 4.1.1.1 | Accidental mortality - Bycatch - Fisheries-related - Hooking (ongoing) |
| 4.1.1.2 | Accidental mortality - Bycatch - Fisheries-related - Netting (past) |
| 4.2.2 | Accidental mortality - Collision - Vehicle collision (past) |
| 5.2 | Persecution - Other (past) |
| 6.2.3 | Pollution (affecting habitat and/or species) - Land pollution - Commercial/Industrial (ongoing) |
| 6.3.6 | Pollution (affecting habitat and/or species) - Water pollution - Oil slicks (ongoing) |
| 7.5 | Natural disasters - Volcanoes (past) |
| 7.7 | Natural disasters - Other (ongoing) |
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Conservation Actions
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Conservation Actions:
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Conservation measures underway:
All Hawaiian breeding localities are part of the US National Wildlife Refuge system or State of Hawaii Seabird Sanctuaries. In 1991, a 50 Nautical Mile Protected Species Zone was established around the Northwestern Hawaiian (primarily to protect monk seals). No longline fishing is allowed in this zone17. Nearly 80% of the breeding population is counted directly or sampled every year. All sites except one have been surveyed since 19915.
Conservation measures proposed:
Continue monitoring population trends and demographic parameters6. Continue satellite-tracking studies to assess temporal and spatial overlap with longline fisheries6. Adopt best-practice mitigating measures in all longline fisheries withing the species's range.
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List of Conservation Actions:
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| 1.2 | Policy-based actions - Legislation (needed) |
| 3.2 | Research actions - Population numbers and range (needed) |
| 3.5 | Research actions - Threats (needed) |
| 3.9 | Research actions - Trends/Monitoring (needed) |
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Bibliography
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Bibliography:
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Bird Reference Citations. The numbers inserted in the text accounts above (usually in bold) refer to references. For further details on these references, click on the BirdLife International link above to go to the specific species account on the BirdLife web site. In some cases, particularly in the taxonomic notes, the references are cited using the author names. Details for these can be found on the BirdLife International web site at the following two places:
For References from A–L.
For References from M–Z. BirdLife International. 2000. Threatened Birds of the World. Lynx Edicions and BirdLife International, Barcelona, Spain and Cambridge, U.K. BirdLife International. 2004 Threatened Birds of the World 2004. CD-ROM. BirdLife International, Cambridge, U.K. BirdLife International. 2005. Threatened Birds of the World 2005. Downloaded from http://www.birdlife.org on 30/04/2005. IUCN. 2003. 2003 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. www.iucnredlist.org. Downloaded on 18 November 2003.
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