Black-footed Albatross (Phoebastria nigripes)

Mohamed bin Zayed Species project number 11252610

Mission: Oikonos is a non-profit 501(c) (3) organization working locally and internationally to increase ecosystem knowledge through science, art, technology, education, and applied conservation. Action Statement: Oikonos, founded in 2001, is dedicated to improving biodiversity conservation on imperiled islands and increasing our understanding of human impacts on marine ecosystems. Oikonos accomplishes these goals by leading community based conservation, conducting rigorous science, engaging the public in stewardship, and sharing knowledge through creative, alternative, and traditional means.

Geographic area of the project: Oikonos works throughout the Pacific Ocean, to study and conserve imperiled islands and far-ranging species. The proposed project focuses on Black-footed Albatross breeding in Kure Atoll (lat: 28.416 deg. N and long: 178.333 deg. W), the western-most colony and a protected wildlife refuge within the Papahanaumokuakea Marine National Monument. Yet, this tracking project will follow the movements of these birds throughout the NW Pacific Ocean, spanning to the Aleutian islands (50 deg. N) and to Japan (138 deg. E). In a pilot study using satellite tracking, Kure birds ventured into the territorial waters of Japan – Russia – Canada and entered the U.S. Alaska exclusive economic zone (see results here: http://oikonos.org/race/).

Target species / habitats covered by the organization: Oikonos focuses on the conservation of imperiled islands and their flora and fauna throughout the Pacific Ocean. Currently, Oikonos is active in islands off California, Chile, New Zealand, and Hawaii, including the main islands and Papahanaumokuakea. In addition to working to study and conserve imperiled islands, Oikonos also emphasizes the shared conservation responsibilities for far-ranging and migratory oceanic birds (e.g., Hyrenbach 2008). To this end, Oikonos is currently undertaking studies of the migration and fishery overlap of three endangered oceanic birds: the Black-footed Albatross, the Hawaiian Petrel, and the Pink-footed Shearwater. These studies bring together diverse cultural and international perspectives (e.g., Nevins et al. 2009).

References Cited:

Hyrenbach, K.D. 2008. Applying Spatially-Explicit Measures for Albatross Conservation. Pages 118-120. In: De Roi, T., Jones, M., Fitter, J. (Eds). Albatross: their World, their Ways. Firefly Books, Buffalo, NY. 240 pp

Nevins H.M., Adams J., Moller H., Newman J., Hester M., Hyrenbach K.D. 2009. International and cross-cultural management in conservation of migratory species. Journal of the Royal Society of New Zealand 39 (4): 183-185.