Well... results are finally in, and we can report on a very successful colouring marking project of fledgling black-browed albatross from Steeple Jason Island on the Falklands. In April 2003 16,537 young black-browed albatross (Thalassarche melanophrys) chicks were marked with orange paint on their breast, just prior to them fledging.

Why This Project is Important
The short-term objective of the project was to collect at-sea sightings of marked birds to determine their dispersal pattern and level of interaction with long-line fishing activity.

We needed to know:

Where do juvenile black-browed albatross disperse in relation to adult birds?

Our intention is then to use these data for the development of long-term projects to help target future research into seabird longline mortality on the Patagonian Shelf, including:

1. How important is juvenile mortality in the decline of black-browed albatross in the Falkland Islands?

2. Are the by-catch rates of adults and juveniles comparable?

Population Decline and Dispersion
The Falkland Islands are the most important breeding site in the world for the black-browed albatross, holding 70% of the global population. There is a large amount of evidence that directly links the current decline in this population, and that of many other albatross and petrel species, with longline mortality. There is considerable evidence that longline mortality in Argentina, Uruguay and Brazil, and historically the Falkland Islands has played a major role in the current dramatic decline in the Falkland Islands black-browed albatross breeding population.

While we do know that the majority (up to 97%) of black-browed mortalities recorded in Brazilian waters are juvenile birds there is currently no data on the movements of dispersing juvenile black-browed albatross, sub-adults and non-breeding birds from the Falkland Islands.

We informed at-sea observers of the project throughout the Southern Hemisphere, with observers in South Africa, Australia, New Zealand, Antarctica and South American waters (Argentina, Brazil, Chile and Uruguay). Colleagues in these regions involved with observer programmes assisted by distributing information and data collection forms to at-sea observers, fishing companies and marine tourism operators.

Project Results
In total, 68 sightings of marked albatross were received. Fifty-eight of sightings were made by observers in Brazil (23 by Projeto Albatroz observers and 34 by Brazilian Observer Program observers), six by a SAST observer south of Mar del Plata on a return trip from the Falkland Islands to Montevideo (Uruguay), a single bird was also recorded by a BAS observer in oceanic waters to the north-east of the Falkland Islands.

Discussion
Our results further emphasise the importance of Brazilian waters and the northern reaches of the Patagonian Shelf for juvenile black-browed albatross, and suggests a marked separation between foraging grounds for adult and juvenile birds. Although no longline mortalities of marked birds were recorded the prevalence of juvenile birds in Brazilian waters in combination with their relatively high levels of mortality in this area clearly exhibit the importance of the region for the conservation of the Falkland Islands black-browed albatross population. While it is still uncertain what relative importance the mortality of juvenile black-browed albatross has in the currently high level of their population decline it is certain that reducing juvenile mortality in Brazilian waters will significantly increase the number of new birds recruited into the adult breeding population.

For more information on the Black-browed Albatross colour marking scheme, visit the Falklands Conservation web site at: http://www.falklandsconservation.com/

If you would like to support the work of Falklands Conservation and purchase our beautifully illustrated book 'A Visitor's Guide to the Falkland Islands' see World Wildlife.