A population and distributional study of white-capped albatross, Auckland Islands 2006/07

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Summary

South West Cape, main Auckland Island, was visited during March-April 2007 (post-guard chick-rearing stage) by a two-person field team to continue studies into the at-sea distribution and demography of white-capped albatross. 

At-sea distributional studies were again successful. Seven actively breeding adults were tracked over 55 foraging trips during March to May 2007, with an additional migration track, to South Africa, by a bird during June and July 2007.

Foraging birds exploited a wide range of zones throughout southern New Zealand, and at a site to the north-east of Tasmania, not all of which overlapped with commercial trawl activity. Birds overlapped most convincingly with commercial trawl activity targeting squid at three general areas – an area immediately to the east and north of the Auckland Islands, a second area extending north-east from the Auckland-Snares shelf to the south-east of South Island, and a third area to the south of Banks Peninsula. Additionally, birds foraged in several areas where there was minimal or no commercial fishing activity. One geolocation tag was retrieved, preliminary data from which revealed that the bird remained within New Zealand waters throughout the non-breeding period.

Population studies were limited to banding of additional breeding adults, and marking of their nests, together with banding of potential recruits to the population within the study area, and an estimation of breeding success.  A further 13 breeding birds were tagged with light-based geolocators, with the aim of recording post-breeding movements over relatively large temporal and spatial scales.