THE ALBATROSS
By Charles Baudelaire

Often, to amuse themselves the ocean sailors

Take hold of the Albatross. Those vast seabirds,

Indolent companions of the voyage, who follow

The vessels, or as signposts glide over whirlpools.

Those men pitch the unwilling birds on deck

Where these kings of the main, clumsy, noisy, beat

The planks piteously with their huge white wings

Like oars now dragged alongside a hull

This wanderers pinions bedraggled and lifeless.

He, the beautiful pilot, how comic and ugly!

One lad rasps his bill with a burning kick

Another mimes, hobbling, the cripple who flew.

The Poet is like this prince of the storm

Who haunts the tempest laughing as it rises...

Exile on the ground as a focus of excoriation,

His gigantic wings a hindrance to departure.

The albatross: flying high, again...

They are one of the earth’s most majestic creatures, but the fishing industry pushed them to the brink of extinction. Now a pioneering scheme in South Africa could save the albatross. By Kunal Dutta

Monday, 23 February 2009

The wandering albatross is one of 18 species of the seabird at risk of extinction

Ever since Samuel Taylor Coleridge first wrote of the fate endured by the ancient mariner who shot the albatross, the majestic bird has been a sight to behold, as well as a feared omen.

Yet literary significance – and a supersition that the bird represents the souls of lost sailors – has not been enough to curtail a fishing industry that is threatening albatrosses with extinction. Up to 100,000 birds a year are killed each year after being caught on the baited hooks of long-line fishing trawlers intended for tuna or swordfish.

Now a pioneering scheme, led by the RSPB and Birdlife International, could herald the beginning of a brighter future. Piloted in South African waters, the project sees fishermen shown a number of simple measures to ward birds away from the fishing hooks and has seen the number of albatrosses and petrels caught in local waters fall by 85 per cent over a year.

The full findings will be unveiled tonight at a special reception in Clarence House. Among those attending will be the Prince of Wales, who once said that the demise of the seabirds would be an “an appalling commentary on the way we treat the world”.

The project dates back to 2006, when the Albatross Task Force was launched in the wake of the growing number of birds unintentionally killed by long-line fishing boats operating in the Southern Ocean. The scheme was approved by the South African government and local fishing industries. Some 18 out of 22 species of the long-lived bird are at risk of extinction, with fishing the main threat to their survival. Albatrosses are among the largest of flying birds, and the great albatrosses have the largest wingspans of any bird. The group responded by deploying a number of trained experts on fishing vessels to instruct crews on ways to prevent birds becoming entangled in the lines that trail fishing boats.

Comprising a number of cost-effective options, the main measure was to deploy streamers, or tori lines, that fall off the back of the boat towards a buoy stationed in the sea, creating a “curtain” that scares the birds away from the baited fishing lines. Fishermen are also encouraged to sink their lines at night, when the birds are asleep, or use weighted hooks that sink quickly and coloured ones that are more difficult for birds in flight to spot.

After piloting the scheme with fishermen and local government in South Africa, the number of albatrosses and petrels caught on the lines of the foreign long-line fishing fleet dropped from 1,016 in 2007 to 153 in 2008.

This was also helped by new permit conditions that were brought in for the long-line fishing industry in South Africa in 2008 which limited seabird “bycatch” to 25 birds, making fishermen take more responsibility for preventing bird deaths.

Dr Ross Wanless, co-ordinator of the Birdlife global seabird programme in Africa, said: “We have to adopt an ecosystem approach to fisheries, to minimise the impacts of fishing on non-target species, including seabirds. Changing entrenched attitudes and practices is a slow process, but the ATF has shown that by working with government and industry, change is possible.” The solution provides new hope for the albatross.

Grahame Madge, conservation spokesman for the RSPB, said: “The problem has been exacerbated in recent years with the industrialisation of fisheries, larger fishing numbers, new technology and the rise of trawl fishing.”

Meidad Goren, who leads the task force, said that compliance with protection measures had reached 96 per cent on the boats, and the measures had not reduced the number of fish caught.

“Seabirds are attracted to the baited hooks and if they get caught they drown as the line sinks. We spend a great deal of time with the fishermen showing them ways to prevent the birds from getting hooked,” he said. “Fishermen can continue to make a living without harming these endangered birds. They now understand that in order to continue fishing they must avoid killing seabirds, and are very co-operative.”

The scheme has since been rolled out in other international “hotspots” where albatrosses are most at risk from long-line fishing, including waters around Namibia, Brazil, Argentina, Ecuador and Chile. The first set of results will be revealed later this year.

Albatross: Facts and figures

*The UK overseas regions have seven pairs of breeding albatrosses – more than half of the Southern Hemisphere’s breeding pairs.

*The number of albatross species is debated and ranges from 13 to 24; 21 is the commonly accepted number.

*Of the assumed 21 species, 18 are thought to be at the risk of extinction, with fishing the main threat.

*An albatross is the central emblem in “The Rime of the Ancient Mariner” by Samuel Taylor Coleridge and a metaphor used in Charles Baudelaire’s poetry.

*The name albatross is derived from the Arabic meaning for “a pelican” and the Portuguese form Alcatraz, which is also the origin of the name of the former prison.

*Albatrosses pair for life. If their partner dies they may search for years for a new mate without luck.

*The bird has a low reproductive rate, with many producing only one egg a year, and has a life expectancy of 60. They spend most of their lives at sea and can sleep on the ocean.

*A grey-headed albatross from south Georgia was recorded flying around the world in 46 days.

*Albatrosses depend on strong winds to fly efficiently so the equatorial doldrums acts as a barrier.

*Albatrosses can be found in every ocean except the North Atlantic.

’Albatrosses have survived in the harshest marine environments for 50 million years; more than 100 times longer than our own species. However, these magnificent birds are unable to cope with man-made threats, such as longline fishing.‘

Sir David Attenborough - Broadcaster and naturalist

Why are albatrosses so vulnerable?

Albatrosses are exceptionally susceptible to longline fishing. They can't breed fast enough to cope with the rate at which they are being killed. Other species, with different life cycles, might be able to survive. Why is this so?

• Naturally, albatrosses are long-lived birds, some living up to 60 years.
• They only breed once they are fully mature - this can take as long as 12 years.
• They only produce one chick at a time, and several albatross species only breed every second year.
  
  19 of the 22 species of albatross in the world are threatened with extinction largely because of longline fishing. BirdLife International compiles the official list of threatened birds. Currently, three albatross species are Critically Endangered, seven are Endangered and nine are Vulnerable.

  A billion hooks out a year

  Longline fishing fleets, which operate throughout the world's oceans, target vast numbers of tuna, swordfish, Patagonian toothfish and other species.

  The boats set fishing lines that can stretch for 130 kilometres (or 80 miles) into the ocean. Each line carries thousands and thousands of hooks baited with squid and fish. These attract albatrosses, which get caught, dragged below the water and drown.

  The large fish these boats catch are in high demand. Single bluefin tuna have fetched as much as US$100,000 on the Japanese market.
  
  

  Why wildlife photographer Frans Lanting is bewitched by albatrosses

  5 August 2008

  

  Since the time of Rembrandt, Dutch masters have employed a mastery of light and shade, colour and form to convey emotions that words simply cannot.

  Today, wildlife enthusiasts and art lovers have their own Dutch master in the form of wildlife photographer Frans Lanting who has been bringing stunning images of the natural world to an appreciative audience across the world from Maastricht to Monterey.

  With technical prowess and a unique style, Frans Lanting's photographs have graced the pages of National Geographic and coffee table books the world over.

  Having been one of the many admirers' of Lanting's work for many years, I was privileged to interview Frans at his gallery in Santa Cruz, in California - his adopted home for the past 30 years.

  Even on the phone, it was clear that three decades of West coast living have not eroded a European modesty and quiet, considered outlook on the world that are clearly reflected in his photographs.

  Frans explained that he first fell in love with idea of professional wildlife photography when he visited California on a research trip at a time he was studying to become an environmental economist.

  Still possessing a distinctive soft Dutch accent, Frans explained: 'I have always been fascinated by the power of pictures, and confronted with the wildlife riches of the West coast I was filled with a desire to become a professional photographer.

  'Photography is a wonderful medium to express the beauty of wildlife, and in a single image you can convey the universe.'

  However, Frans Lanting's individual approach to his art is perhaps best explored in the sequences of photographs he's produced for books and magazines where his considered journalistic, almost essay, style helps the viewer achieve an insight into the life of his subject.

  It is perhaps as an albatross photographer that Frans Lanting is most renowned, with some of the latest examples of his work appearing in last December's National Geographic albatross feature.

  But it was over 25 years ago that Frans Lanting first encountered albatrosses when he spent four or five months on the island of Midway in Hawaii, sharing the tiny atoll with the birds and the US military.

  In the late 1980s Lanting spent time with more albatrosses, this time in the southern hemisphere on South Georgia and the 'Jasons' on the Falkland Islands - the largest albatross colony in the world.

  He said: 'Here, in the company of seabird experts like John Croxall, of the British Antarctic Survey, I learned how the lives of albatrosses are connected with the sea.' His time in the South Atlantic also opened Frans' eyes to the threats to albatrosses from fisheries. The conservation issues affecting species are an integral component of Lanting's work.

  In 2007, National Geographic commissioned Lanting to revisit albatross colonies on South Georgia and the Falklands, and also New Zealand, to document the dramatic changes taking place in albatross colonies in some of the most remote parts of the world.

  He is particularly concerned about the threats to albatrosses, especially from longline fisheries, but he is also upbeat about some of the progress there's been with albatross conservation. Commenting on the current situation for albatrosses, Frans said: 'It's a really mixed scorecard at present. A lot of progress has been made on protecting places, ridding islands of rodents and boosting long-term survival.' He was particularly eager to stress the good work in fisheries. He added: 'New Zealand is leading the way in making fisheries sustainable.'

  But he was swift to highlight his concerns about 'rogue areas' where albatrosses are still dying in huge numbers because of vessels are not employing albatross-friendly forms of fishing.

  Commenting on the work of the Albatross Task Force he said: 'The RSPB and BirdLife International have been really effective in getting the issue [of albatross bycatch] to people's attention.'

  Having photographed many species of wildlife, Frans would not be drawn on which are his favourites. He wryly said: 'I've never met an animal I haven't liked.' But his passion for albatrosses has clearly been reinforced through a strong relationship lasting three decades.

  He added: 'I will confess, I have a soft spot for albatrosses. They're fascinating and demanding subjects, with their amazing powers of flight and social interactions.'

  He also spoke of the challenges of photographing birds spending the majority of their lives in the harshness of the open ocean.

  It was clear that his work with albatrosses is not over. He added confidently: 'I'll find more reasons to get back to albatrosses.'

  If albatrosses ever need an obituary, then Frans Lanting would be the person to provide the finest image celebrating their life. But as fine as Lanting's photographs are, I'm sure even he would admit, that stunning photographs are not a suitable replacement for the real thing.