The Sooty Tern is highly aerial and marine and will spend years flying at sea without returning to land. The Sooty Tern, Onychoprion fuscatus (formerly Sterna fuscata) is a Seabird of the Tern family (Sternidae

Seabirds are birds that have adapted to life within the marine environment. Birds ( class Aves) are bipedal endothermic ( Warm-blooded) Vertebrate animals that lay eggs. An adaptation is a characteristic of an Organism that has been favored by Natural selection and Marine is an Umbrella term. As an adjective it is usually applicable to things relating to the Sea or Ocean, such as Marine biology, Marine While seabirds vary greatly in lifestyle, behaviour and physiology, they often exhibit striking convergent evolution, as the same environmental problems and feeding niches have resulted in similar adaptations. Convergent evolution describes the acquisition of the same biological trait in unrelated lineages In Ecology, a niche (pronounced nich nēsh or nish A shorthand definition of niche is how an organism makes a living The first seabirds evolved in the Cretaceous period, and modern seabird families emerged in the Paleogene. The Cretaceous (kriːˈteɪʃəs, usually abbreviated 'K' for its German translation "Kreide" is a geologic period and system, reaching from the end of The Paleogene (alternatively Palaeogene) is a geologic period and system that began 65

In general, seabirds live longer, breed later and have fewer young than other birds do, but they invest a great deal of time in their young. In Biology, mating is the pairing of opposite- Sex or hermaphroditic Organisms for copulation and in Social animals also to raise their Most species nest in colonies, which can vary in size from a few dozen birds to millions. In Biology, a species is one of the basic units of Biological classification and a Taxonomic rank. A seabird colony is a site which Seabirds visit to breed typically during the summer Many species are famous for undertaking long annual migrations, crossing the equator or circumnavigating the Earth in some cases. Bird migration refers to the regular seasonal journeys undertaken by many species of Birds Bird movements include those made in response to changes in food availability The equator (sometimes referred to colloquially as "the Line") is the intersection of the Earth 's surface with the plane perpendicular to the They feed both at the ocean's surface and below it, and even feed on each other. Seabirds can be highly pelagic, coastal, or in some cases spend a part of the year away from the sea entirely. Any water in the sea that is not close to the bottom is in the pelagic zone.

Seabirds and humans have a long history together: they have provided food to hunters, guided fishermen to fishing stocks and led sailors to land. Hunting is the practice of pursuing Animals for Food, Recreation, or Trade. For the computer security term see Phishing. Fishing is the activity of catching Fish. Many species are currently threatened by human activities, and conservation efforts are under way. Threatened species are any species (including Animals Plants fungi, etc The conservation movement also known as nature conservation is a political social and to some extent scientific movement that seeks to protect natural resources including

Classification of species as seabirds

There exists no single definition of which groups, families, and species are seabirds, and most definitions are in some way arbitrary. In the words of two seabird scientists, "The one common characteristic that all seabirds share is that they feed in saltwater; but, as seems to be true with any statement in biology, some do not. Seawater is Water from a Sea or Ocean. On average seawater in the world's oceans has a Salinity of about 3 "^[1] However, by convention all of the penguins and Procellariiformes, all of the Pelecaniformes except the darters, and some of the Charadriiformes (the skuas, gulls, terns, auks and skimmers) are classified as seabirds. Penguins ( order Sphenisciformes, family Spheniscidae) are a group of aquatic, flightless Birds living almost Procellariiformes is an order of Seabirds that comprises four families: the Albatrosses procellariids, Storm-petrels and Diving The Pelecaniformes are an order of medium-sized and large waterbirds found worldwide The darters or snake-birds are birds in the family Anhingidae. Charadriiformes is a diverse order of small to medium-large Birds It includes about 350 Species and has members in all parts of the world Skuas are Seabirds in the family Stercorariidae. The three smaller skuas are called jaegers in North America Gulls (often informally Seagulls) are birds in the family Laridae Terns are Seabirds in the family Sternidae, previously considered a subfamily (Sterninae of the gull family Laridae (van Tuinen et al This article is about a family of birds For the American ornithological journal see The Auk. The Skimmers, Rhynchopidae, are a small family of Tern -like Birds in the order Charadriiformes which also includes the Waders Gulls The phalaropes are usually included as well, since although they are waders ("shorebirds" in North America), two of the three species are oceanic for nine months of the year, crossing the equator to feed pelagically. A phalarope is any of three living Species of slender-necked shorebirds in the genus Phalaropus of the Bird family Scolopacidae Waders, called shorebirds in North America (where "wader" is used to refer to long-legged wading Birds such as Storks and

Loons and grebes, which nest on lakes but winter at sea, are usually categorised as water birds, not seabirds. The loons (eg North America or divers (eg UK/Ireland are a group of aquatic birds found in many parts of North America and northern Eurasia Grebes are members of the Podicipediformes order, a widely distributed order of freshwater diving birds some of which visit the sea when migrating Although there are a number of sea ducks in the family Anatidae which are truly marine in the winter, by convention they are usually excluded from the seabird grouping. Many waders (or shorebirds) and herons are also highly marine, living on the sea's edge (coast), but are also not treated as seabirds. The herons are wading Birds in the Ardeidae family Some are called Egrets or Bitterns instead of herons

Evolution and fossil record

Seabirds, by virtue of living in a geologically depositional environment (that is, in the sea where sediments are readily laid down), are well represented in the fossil record. Geology (from Greek γη gê, "earth" and λόγος Logos, "speech" lit Sediment is any particulate matter that can be transported by fluid flow and which eventually is deposited as a layer of solid particles on the bed or bottom of a body of FOSSIL is a standard protocol for allowing serial communication for Telecommunications programs under the DOS Operating system. ^[1] They are first known to occur in the Cretaceous Period, the earliest being the Hesperornithiformes, like Hesperornis regalis, a flightless loon-like seabird that dove in a fashion similar to grebes and loons (using its feet to move underwater)^[2] but had a beak filled with sharp teeth. The Cretaceous (kriːˈteɪʃəs, usually abbreviated 'K' for its German translation "Kreide" is a geologic period and system, reaching from the end of Hesperornithes is an extinct and highly specialized Clade of Cretaceous toothed Birds Hesperornithine birds apparently limited to former aquatic habitats ^[3]

The Cretaceous seabird Hesperornis

While Hesperornis is not thought to have left descendants, the earliest modern seabirds also occurred in the Cretaceous, with a species called Tytthostonyx glauconiticus, which seems allied to the Procellariiformes and/or Pelecaniformes. Modern birds (subclass Neornithes) are the members of class Aves that have survived into recent times and have coexisted with Humans Modern birds are Tytthostonyx is a Genus of prehistoric Seabird. Found in the much-debated Hornerstown Formation which straddles the Cretaceous-Paleocene Procellariiformes is an order of Seabirds that comprises four families: the Albatrosses procellariids, Storm-petrels and Diving The Pelecaniformes are an order of medium-sized and large waterbirds found worldwide In the Paleogene the seas were dominated by early Procellariidae, giant penguins and two extinct families, the Pelagornithidae and the Plotopteridae (a group of large seabirds that looked like the penguins). The Paleogene (alternatively Palaeogene) is a geologic period and system that began 65 The family Procellariidae is a group of Seabirds that comprises the Fulmarine petrels the Gadfly petrels the prions, and the Shearwaters Penguins ( order Sphenisciformes, family Spheniscidae) are a group of aquatic, flightless Birds living almost In Biology and Ecology, extinction is the cessation of existence of a Species or group of taxa. In Biological classification, family ( Latin The Pelagornithidae or pseudo-tooth birds were a family of large Seabirds from the order Pelecaniformes, which were common worldwide from Plotopteridae is the name of an Extinct family of flightless Seabirds from the order Pelecaniformes. ^[4] Modern genera began their wide radiation in the Miocene, although the genus Puffinus (which includes today's Manx Shearwater and Sooty Shearwater) might date back to the Oligocene. The Miocene is a geological epoch of the Neogene period and extends from about 23 A genus (plural genera from Γένος Latin genus "descent family type gender" is a low-level Taxonomic Puffinus is a Genus of Seabirds in the order Procellariiformes The Manx Shearwater ( Puffinus puffinus) is a medium-sized Shearwater in the Seabird family Procellariidae. The Sooty Shearwater ( Puffinus griseus) is a medium-large Shearwater in the Seabird family Procellariidae. The Oligocene is a geologic epoch of the Paleogene period and extends from about 33 ^[1] The highest diversity of seabirds apparently existed during the Late Miocene and the Pliocene. The Pliocene epoch (spelled Pleiocene in some older texts is the period in the Geologic timescale that extends At the end of the latter, the oceanic food web had undergone a period of upheaval due to extinction of considerable numbers of marine species;^[5] subsequently, the spread of marine mammals seems to have prevented seabirds from reaching their erstwhile diversity. Food chains, also called food networks and/or trophic networks, describe the feeding relationships between species within an Ecosystem. ^[6]

Characteristics

Adaptations to life at sea

Seabirds have made numerous adaptations to living on and feeding in the sea. Wing morphology has been shaped by the niche an individual species or family has evolved, so that looking at a wing's shape and loading can tell a scientist about its life feeding behaviour. WING "ESPN 1410" is a commercial AM radio station in Dayton Ohio operating with 5000 watts at 1410 kHz with studios offices and transmitter located on David In Ecology, a niche (pronounced nich nēsh or nish A shorthand definition of niche is how an organism makes a living eVolution is the third Album by eLDee, it was due to be released in 2008 In Aerodynamics, wing loading is the loaded weight of the aircraft divided by the area of the wing Longer wings and low wing loading are typical of more pelagic species, whilst diving species have shorter wings. Any water in the sea that is not close to the bottom is in the pelagic zone. ^[7] Species such as the Wandering Albatross, which forage over huge areas of sea, have a reduced capacity for powered flight and are dependent on a type of gliding called dynamic soaring (where the wind deflected by waves provides lift) as well as slope soaring. The Wandering Albatross ( Diomedea exulans) is a large Seabird from the family Diomedeidae which has a circumpolar range in the Southern Gliding is a Recreational activity and competitive Sport in which pilots fly un-powered aircraft known as Gliders or sailplanes Dynamic Soaring is a Gliding technique used to gain Kinetic energy by repeatedly crossing the boundary between air masses of significantly different horizontal ^[8] Seabirds also almost always have webbed feet, to aid movement on the surface as well as assisting diving in some species. The Procellariiformes are unusual amongst birds in having a strong sense of smell, which is used to find widely distributed food in a vast ocean,^[9] and possibly to locate their colonies. Procellariiformes is an order of Seabirds that comprises four families: the Albatrosses procellariids, Storm-petrels and Diving Olfaction (also known as olfactics or smell) refers to the Sense of smell.

Salt glands are used by seabirds to deal with the salt they ingest by drinking and feeding (particularly on crustaceans), and to help them osmoregulate. The supraorbital gland is a type of lateral nasal gland found in some species of marine birds particularly Penguins, which removes sodium chloride from the bloodstream Salt is a Dietary mineral composed primarily of Sodium chloride that is essential for Animal life but toxic to most land plants Structure of crustaceans As Arthropods crustaceans have a stiff Exoskeleton, which must be shed to allow the animal to grow ( Ecdysis or molting Osmoregulation is the active regulation of the Osmotic pressure of bodily fluids to maintain the Homeostasis of the body's Water content that is it keeps ^[10] The excretions from these glands (which are positioned in the head of the birds, emerging from the nasal cavity) are almost pure sodium chloride. Excretion is the process of eliminating waste products of Metabolism and other non-useful materials The nasal cavity (or nasal fossa) is a large air-filled space above and behind the nose in the middle of the face For sodium chloride in the diet see Salt. Sodium chloride, also known as common salt, table salt, or Halite, is a

Cormorants, like this Double-crested Cormorant, have plumage that is partly wettable, allowing them to dive without fighting buoyancy.

With the exception of the cormorants and some terns, and in common with most other birds, all seabirds have waterproof plumage. The Bird family Phalacrocoracidae is represented by some 40 Species of cormorants and shags. Plumage refers both to the layer of Feathers that cover a Bird and the pattern colour and arrangement of those feathers However, compared to land birds, they have far more feathers protecting their bodies. This dense plumage is better able to protect the bird from getting wet, and cold is kept out by a dense layer of down feathers. For the record label see Duck Down Records The down of Birds is a layer of fine Feathers found under the tougher exterior feathers The cormorants possess a layer of unique feathers that retain a smaller layer of air (compared to other diving birds) but otherwise soak up water. ^[11] This allows them to swim without fighting the buoyancy that retaining air in the feathers causes, yet retain enough air to prevent the bird losing excessive heat through contact with water. In Physics, buoyancy ( BrE IPA: /ˈbɔɪənsi/ is the upward Force on an object produced by the surrounding liquid or gas in which it is

The plumage of most seabirds is less colourful than that of land birds, restricted in the main to variations of black, white or grey. ^[7] A few species sport colourful plumes (such as the tropicbirds or some penguins), but most of the colour in seabirds appears in the bills and legs. The plumage of seabirds is thought in many cases to be for camouflage, both defensive (the colour of US Navy battleships is the same as that of Antarctic Prions,^[7] and in both cases it reduces visibility at sea) and aggressive (the white underside possessed by many seabirds helps hide them from prey below). Camouflage is a method of cryptic or concealing coloration that allows an otherwise visible Organism A battleship is a large heavily armored Warship with a main battery consisting of the largest Calibre of Guns Battleships were The Antarctic Prion ( Pachyptila desolata) also known as the Totorore in Maori, is the largest of the prions, a Genus of small

Diet and feeding

Seabirds evolved to exploit different food resources in the world's seas and oceans, and to a great extent, their physiology and behaviour have been shaped by their diet. Food is any substance usually composed primarily of Carbohydrates Fats water and/or Proteins that can be eaten or drunk by an Physiology (from Greek grc φύσις physis, "nature origin" and grc -λογία -logia) is the study of the mechanical physical Ethology ( from Greek ἦθος ethos, "character" and λόγος logos, "knowledge") is the scientific study of Animal This article is primarily about the human diet For a discussion of animal diets see List of feeding behaviours. These evolutionary forces have often caused species in different families and even orders to evolve similar strategies and adaptations to the same problems, leading to remarkable convergent evolution, such as that between auks and penguins. Convergent evolution describes the acquisition of the same biological trait in unrelated lineages This article is about a family of birds For the American ornithological journal see The Auk. Penguins ( order Sphenisciformes, family Spheniscidae) are a group of aquatic, flightless Birds living almost There are four basic feeding strategies, or ecological guilds, for feeding at sea: surface feeding, pursuit diving, plunge diving, and predation of higher vertebrates; within these guilds there are multiple variations on the theme.

Surface feeding

Many seabirds feed on the ocean's surface, as the action of marine currents often concentrates food such as krill, fish, squid or other prey items within reach of a dipped head. An ocean current is continuous directed movement of Ocean water. Krill are a type of Shrimp -like marine Invertebrate animal These small Crustaceans are important organisms of the Zooplankton, particularly Fish are aquatic Vertebrate animals that are typically ectothermic (previously Cold-blooded) covered with scales, and equipped with two Squid are marine Cephalopods of the order Teuthida, which comprises around 300 species

Wilson's Storm Petrels pattering on the water's surface

Surface feeding itself can be broken up into two different approaches, surface feeding while flying (for example as practiced by gadfly petrels, frigatebirds and storm-petrels), and surface feeding whilst swimming (examples of which are practiced by fulmars, gulls, many of the shearwaters and gadfly petrels). The Wilson's Storm-petrel ( Oceanites oceanicus) also known as Wilson's Petrel, is a small Seabird of the Storm-petrel family Hydrobatidae Flight is the main mode of locomotion used by most of the world's bird species The gadfly petrels are Seabirds in the Bird order Procellariiformes. The frigatebirds are a family Fregatidae, of Seabirds There are five Species in the single Genus Fregata. The storm-petrels are Seabirds in the family Hydrobatidae, part of the order Procellariiformes. The two Fulmars are closely related Seabirds occupying the same niche in different Oceans. Gulls (often informally Seagulls) are birds in the family Laridae Shearwaters are medium-sized long-winged Seabirds There are more than 20 Species of shearwaters a few larger ones in the genus Calonectris Surface feeders in flight include some of the most acrobatic of seabirds, which either snatch morsels from the water (as do frigate-birds and some terns), or "walk", pattering and hovering on the water's surface, as some of the storm-petrels do. ^[12] Many of these do not ever land in the water, and some, such as the frigatebirds, have difficulty getting airborne again should they do so. ^[13] Another seabird family that does not land while feeding is the skimmer, which has a unique fishing method: flying along the surface with the lower mandible in the water—this shuts automatically when the bill touches something in the water. The Skimmers, Rhynchopidae, are a small family of Tern -like Birds in the order Charadriiformes which also includes the Waders Gulls The skimmer's bill reflects its unusual lifestyle, with the lower mandible uniquely being longer than the upper one.

Surface feeders that swim often have unique bills as well, adapted for their specific prey. Prions have special bills with filters called lamellae to filter out plankton from mouthfuls of water,^[14] and many albatrosses and petrels have hooked bills to snatch fast-moving prey. The prions are small Petrels in the Genus Pachyptila. Together with the Blue Petrel, they form one of the four groups within the Procellariidae Plankton consist of any drifting Organisms ( Animals Plants Archaea, or Bacteria) that inhabit the Pelagic zone of Gulls have more generalised bills that reflect their more opportunistic lifestyle.

Pursuit diving

The Chinstrap Penguin is a highly streamlined pursuit diver.

Pursuit diving exerts greater pressures (both evolutionary and physiological) on seabirds, but the reward is a greater area in which to feed than is available to surface feeders. Propulsion underwater can be provided by wings (as used by penguins, auks, diving petrels, and some other species of petrel) or feet (as used by cormorants, grebes, loons and several types of fish-eating ducks). Marine propulsion is the act of moving a floating object over or through water The diving-petrels are Seabirds in the Bird order Procellariiformes The Bird family Phalacrocoracidae is represented by some 40 Species of cormorants and shags. Grebes are members of the Podicipediformes order, a widely distributed order of freshwater diving birds some of which visit the sea when migrating The loons (eg North America or divers (eg UK/Ireland are a group of aquatic birds found in many parts of North America and northern Eurasia For duck as a food see Duck (food; for other meanings see Duck (disambiguation. Wing-propelled divers are generally faster than foot-propelled divers. ^[1] In both cases, the use of wings or feet for diving has limited their utility in other situations: loons and grebes walk with extreme difficulty (if at all), penguins cannot fly, and auks have sacrificed flight efficiency in favour of underwater diving. Penguins ( order Sphenisciformes, family Spheniscidae) are a group of aquatic, flightless Birds living almost For example, the razorbill (an Atlantic auk) requires 64% more energy to fly than a petrel of equivalent size. The Razorbill, Alca torda, is a large Auk, 38-43 cm in length with a 60-69 cm wingspan ^[15] Many shearwaters are intermediate between the two, having longer wings than typical wing-propelled divers but heavier wing loadings than the other surface-feeding procellariids, leaving them capable of diving to considerable depths while still being efficient long-distance travellers. Shearwaters are medium-sized long-winged Seabirds There are more than 20 Species of shearwaters a few larger ones in the genus Calonectris The family Procellariidae is a group of Seabirds that comprises the Fulmarine petrels the Gadfly petrels the prions, and the Shearwaters The most impressive diving exhibited by shearwaters is found in the Short-tailed Shearwater, which has been recorded diving below 70 m. The Short-tailed Shearwater Puffinus tenuirostris, or Yolla, more commonly known as the Muttonbird in Australia, is the most ^[16] Some albatross species are also capable of some limited diving, with Light-mantled Sooty Albatrosses holding the record at 12 m. ^[17] Of all the wing-propelled pursuit divers, the most efficient in the air are the albatrosses, and it is no coincidence that they are the poorest divers. Albatrosses, of the biological family Diomedeidae, are large Seabirds allied to the procellariids, Storm-petrels and Diving-petrels This is the dominant guild in polar and subpolar environments, as it is energetically inefficient in warmer waters. With their poor flying ability, many wing-propelled pursuit divers are more limited in their foraging range than other guilds, especially during the breeding season when hungry chicks need regular feeding.

Plunge diving

Gannets, boobies, tropicbirds, some terns and Brown Pelicans all engage in plunge diving, taking fast moving prey by diving into the water from flight. Gannets are Seabirds in the family Sulidae, closely related to the boobies. Tropicbirds are a family, Phaethontidae, of tropical pelagic Seabirds There are three species in one Genus Phaethon Terns are Seabirds in the family Sternidae, previously considered a subfamily (Sterninae of the gull family Laridae (van Tuinen et al The brown pelican ( Pelecanus occidentalis) is the smallest of the eight species of Pelican, although it is a large bird in nearly every other regard Plunge diving allows birds to use the energy from the momentum of the dive to combat natural buoyancy (caused by air trapped in plumage),^[18] and thus uses less energy than the dedicated pursuit divers, allowing them utilise more widely distributed food resources, for example, in impoverished tropical seas. The Tropics are centered on the Equator and limited in Latitude by the Tropic of Cancer in the northern hemisphere at approximately 23°26' (23 In general, this is the most specialised method of hunting employed by seabirds; other non-specialists (such as gulls and skuas) may employ it but do so with less skill and from lower heights. In Brown Pelicans the skills of plunge diving take several years to fully develop—once mature, they can dive from 20 m (70 ft) above the water's surface, shifting the body before impact to avoid injury. ^[19] It has been suggested that plunge divers are restricted in their hunting grounds to clear waters that afford a view of their prey from the air,^[20] and while they are the dominant guild in the tropics, the link between plunge diving and water clarity is inconclusive. ^[21] Some plunge divers (as well as some surface feeders) are dependent on dolphins and tuna to push shoaling fish up towards the surface. Dolphins are Marine mammals that are closely related to Whales and Porpoises There are almost forty species of dolphin in seventeen genera. Tuna, are several Species of ocean-dwelling Fish in the family Scombridae, mostly in the genus Thunnus. ^[22]

Kleptoparasitism, scavenging and predation

Some seabirds, like this South Polar Skua (left), will take the eggs of other birds. This skua is attempting to push an Adelie Penguin (right) off its nest.

This catch-all category refers to other seabird strategies that involve the next trophic level up. In Ecology, trophic dynamics is the system of trophic levels ( Greek trophē, food which describe the position that an organism occupies Kleptoparasites are seabirds that make a part of their living stealing food of other seabirds. Kleptoparasitism or cleptoparasitism (literally Parasitism by Theft) is a form of Feeding where one animal takes Prey from another Most famously, frigatebirds and skuas engage in this behaviour, although gulls, terns and other species will steal food opportunistically. The frigatebirds are a family Fregatidae, of Seabirds There are five Species in the single Genus Fregata. Skuas are Seabirds in the family Stercorariidae. The three smaller skuas are called jaegers in North America ^[23] The nocturnal nesting behaviour of some seabirds has been interpreted as arising due to pressure from this aerial piracy. As an Animal behavior, nocturnality describes sleeping during the Daytime and being active at Night - the opposite of the diurnal ^[24] Kleptoparasitism is not thought to play a significant part of the diet of any species, and is instead a supplement to food obtained by hunting. ^[1] A study of Great Frigatebirds stealing from Masked Boobies estimated that the frigatebirds could at most obtain 40% of the food they needed, and on average obtained only 5%. The Great Frigatebird ( Fregata minor) is a large dispersive Seabird in the Frigatebird family. The Masked Booby, Sula dactylatra, is a large Seabird of the Gannet family Sulidae. ^[25] Many species of gull will feed on seabird and sea mammal carrion when the opportunity arises, as will giant petrels. Carrion (from the Latin caro, meaning meat refers to the carcass of a dead animal The giant petrels are two large Seabirds from the Genus Macronectes. Some species of albatross also engage in scavenging: an analysis of regurgitated squid beaks has shown that many of the squid eaten are too large to have been caught alive, and include mid-water species likely to be beyond the reach of albatrosses. Squid are marine Cephalopods of the order Teuthida, which comprises around 300 species ^[26] Some species will also feed on other seabirds; for example, gulls, skuas and giant petrels will often take eggs, chicks and even small adult seabirds from nesting colonies. ^[27]

Life history

Seabirds' life histories are dramatically different from those of land birds. In general, they are K-selected, live much longer (anywhere between twenty and sixty years), delay breeding for longer (for up to ten years), and invest more effort into fewer young. In Ecology, r/K selection theory relates to the selection of traits which promote success in particular environments ^[1][28] Most species will only have one clutch a year, unless they lose the first (with a few exceptions, like the Cassin's Auklet),^[29] and many species (like the tubenoses and sulids), only one egg a year. A clutch of eggs refers to all the eggs produced by one Bird or Reptile at a single time particularly The Cassin’s Auklet, Ptychoramphus aleuticus, is a small chunky Seabird that ranges widely in the North Pacific. Procellariiformes is an order of Seabirds that comprises four families: the Albatrosses procellariids, Storm-petrels and Diving The Bird family Sulidae comprises the Gannets and boobies. Both groups are medium-large coastal Seabirds that plunge-dive for fish ^[14]

Northern Gannet pair "billing" during courtship; like all seabirds except the phalaropes they maintain a pair bond throughout the breeding season. The Northern Gannet ( Morus bassanus, formerly Sula bassana) is a Seabird and is the largest member of the Gannet family Sulidae

Care of young is protracted, extending for as long as six months, among the longest for birds. For example, once Common Guillemot chicks fledge, they remain with the male parent for several months at sea. The Common Guillemot or Common Murre ( Uria aalge) is a large Auk. Fledge is the stage in a young Bird 's life when the feathers and wing muscles are sufficiently developed for flight ^[15] The frigatebirds have the longest period of parental care of any bird, with the chicks fledging after four to six months and with continued assistance after that for up to fourteen months. The frigatebirds are a family Fregatidae, of Seabirds There are five Species in the single Genus Fregata. ^[30] Due to the extended period of care, breeding occurs every two years rather than annually for some species. This life-history strategy has probably evolved both in response to the challenges of living at sea (collecting widely scattered prey items), the frequency of breeding failures due to unfavourable marine conditions, and the relative lack of predation compared to that of land-living birds. ^[1]

Because of the greater investment in raising the young and because foraging for food may occur far from the nest site, in all seabird species except the phalaropes, both parents participate in caring for the young, and pairs are typically at least seasonally monogamous. Animal sexual behaviour takes many different forms even within the same Species. Many species, such as gulls, auks and penguins, retain the same mate for several seasons, and many petrel species mate for life. This article is about the petrel seabirds For other uses see Petrel (disambiguation. ^[14] The albatrosses and procellariids which mate for life can take many years to form a pair bond before they breed, and the albatrosses have an elaborate breeding dance that is part of pair-bond formation. The family Procellariidae is a group of Seabirds that comprises the Fulmarine petrels the Gadfly petrels the prions, and the Shearwaters ^[31]

Breeding and colonies

See also Seabird colony

Common Murres breed on densely packed colonies on offshore rocks, islands and cliffs. A seabird colony is a site which Seabirds visit to breed typically during the summer The Common Guillemot or Common Murre ( Uria aalge) is a large Auk.

Ninety-five per cent of seabirds are colonial,^[1] and seabird colonies are amongst the largest bird colonies in the world, providing one of Earth's great wildlife spectacles. Colonies of over a million birds have been recorded, both in the tropics (such as Kiritimati in the Pacific) and in the polar latitudes (as in Antarctica). Kiritimati or Christmas Island is a Pacific Ocean Atoll in the northern Line Islands and part of the Republic of Kiribati. The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth 's Oceanic divisions Seabird colonies occur exclusively for the purpose of breeding; non-breeding birds will only collect together outside the breeding season in areas where prey species are densely aggregated.

Seabird colonies are highly variable. Individual nesting sites can be widely spaced, as in an albatross colony, or densely packed as with a murre colony. Uria is a genus of Seabirds in the Auk family known commonly as Guillemots or in North America as murres'. In most seabird colonies, several different species will nest on the same colony, often exhibiting some niche separation. In Ecology, a niche (pronounced nich nēsh or nish A shorthand definition of niche is how an organism makes a living Seabirds can nest in trees (if any are available), on the ground (with or without nests), on cliffs, in burrows under the ground and in rocky crevices. A tree is a perennial Woody plant. It is most often defined as a woody plant that has many secondary branches supported clear of the ground on a single main stem or A bird nest is the spot in which a Bird lays and incubates its eggs and raises its young In Geography and Geology, a cliff is a significant vertical or near vertical rock exposure A burrow is a hole or tunnel dug into the ground by an Animal to create a space suitable for habitation temporary refuge or as a byproduct of locomotion Competition can be strong both within species and between species, with aggressive species such as Sooty Terns pushing less dominant species out of the most desirable nesting spaces. The Sooty Tern, Onychoprion fuscatus (formerly Sterna fuscata) is a Seabird of the Tern family (Sternidae ^[32] The tropical Bonin Petrel nests during the winter to avoid competition with the more aggressive Wedge-tailed Shearwater. The Bonin Petrel, Pterodroma hypoleuca, is a Seabird in the family Procellariidae. The Wedge-tailed Shearwater, Puffinus pacificus is a medium-large Shearwater in the Seabird family Procellariidae. When the seasons overlap, the Wedge-tailed Shearwaters will kill young Bonin Petrels in order to use their burrows. ^[33]

Many seabirds show remarkable site fidelity, returning to the same burrow, nest or site for many years, and they will defend that site from rivals with great vigour. Fidelity is a notion that at its most abstract level implies a truthful connection to a source or sources ^[1] This increases breeding success, provides a place for returning mates to reunite, and reduces the costs of prospecting for a new site. ^[34] Young adults breeding for the first time usually return to their natal colony, and often nest close to where they hatched. This tendency, known as philopatry, is so strong that a study of Laysan Albatrosses found that the average distance between hatching site and the site where a bird established its own territory was 22 m;^[35] another study, this time on Cory's Shearwaters nesting near Corsica, found that of nine out of 61 male chicks that returned to breed at their natal colony bred in the burrow they were raised in, and two actually bred with their own mother. In Animal Behaviour philopatry is the tendency of a migrating animal to return to a specific location in order to breed or feed The Laysan Albatross, Phoebastria immutabilis, is a large Seabird that ranges across the North Pacific. The Cory's Shearwater ( Calonectris diomedea) is a large Shearwater in the Seabird family Procellariidae. Corsica (Corse Corsican and Italian: Corsica) is the fourth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea (after Sicily ^[36]

Colonies are usually situated on islands, cliffs or headlands which land mammals have difficulty accessing. Mammals ( class Mammalia) are a class of Vertebrate Animals characterized by the presence of Sweat glands, including sweat glands ^[37] This is thought to provide protection to seabirds, which are often very clumsy on land. Coloniality often arises in types of bird which do not defend feeding territories (such as swifts, which have a very variable prey source); this may be a reason why it arises more frequently in seabirds. The swifts are a family Apodidae, of highly aerial Birds They are superficially similar to Swallows but are actually not closely related to those ^[1] There are other possible advantages: colonies may act as information centres, where seabirds returning to the sea to forage can find out where prey is by studying returning individuals of the same species. There are disadvantages to colonial life, particularly the spread of disease. A disease is an abnormal condition of an organism that impairs bodily functions and can be deadly Colonies also attract the attention of predators, principally other birds, and many species attend their colonies nocturnally to avoid predation. As an Animal behavior, nocturnality describes sleeping during the Daytime and being active at Night - the opposite of the diurnal ^[38]

Migration

Pelicans flock flying over Havana Bay area. A pelican is a large water Bird with a distinctive pouch under the beak belonging to the Bird family Pelecanidae. Havana ( IPA: aˈβana officially Ciudad de La Habana, is the Capital city, major port and leading These birds come to Cuba every year from North America in the north hemisphere winter season. The Republic of Cuba (ˈkjuːbə or) consists of the island of Cuba (the largest and second-most populous island of the Greater Antilles) Isla de la

Arctic Terns breed in the arctic and subarctic and winter in Antarctica.

Like many birds, seabirds often migrate after the breeding season. Bird migration refers to the regular seasonal journeys undertaken by many species of Birds Bird movements include those made in response to changes in food availability The breeding season is the most suitable season usually with favorable conditions and abundant food and water for breeding among some wild animals and birds (wildlife Of these, the trip taken by the Arctic Tern is the farthest of any bird, crossing the equator in order to spend the Austral summer in Antarctica. The Arctic Tern ( Sterna paradisaea) is a Seabird of the Tern family Sternidae. The equator (sometimes referred to colloquially as "the Line") is the intersection of the Earth 's surface with the plane perpendicular to the Other species also undertake trans-equatorial trips, both from the north to the south, and from south to north. The population of Elegant Terns, which nest off Baja California, splits after the breeding season with some birds travelling north to the Central Coast of California and some travelling as far south as Peru and Chile to feed in the Humboldt Current. The Elegant Tern ( Thalasseus elegans, syn Sterna elegans - see Bridge et al Baja California (pronounced ˈbɑːhɑː kælɨˈfɔrnjə in English is the northernmost state of Mexico. The Central Coast is an area of California, United States, roughly spanning the area between the Monterey Bay and Point Conception. Peru (Perú Piruw Piruw officially the Republic of Peru ( reˈpuβlika del peˈɾu is a country in western South America. Chile, officially the Republic of Chile ( Spanish:) is a country in South America occupying a long and narrow Coastal strip wedged between the The Humboldt Current is a cold low- Salinity Ocean current that flows north-westward along the west coast of South America from the southern tip of Chile ^[39] The Sooty Shearwater undertakes an annual migration cycle that rivals that of the Arctic Tern; birds that nest in New Zealand and Chile and spend the northern summer feeding in the North Pacific off Japan, Alaska and California, an annual round trip of 40,000 statute miles (64,000 km). The Sooty Shearwater ( Puffinus griseus) is a medium-large Shearwater in the Seabird family Procellariidae. New Zealand is an Island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses (the North Island and the South Island For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Japan topics. Alaska ( Аляска Alyaska) is a state in the United States of America, in the northwest of the North American continent A mile is a unit of Length, usually used to measure Distance, in a number of different systems including Imperial units United States ^[40]

Other species also migrate shorter distances away from the breeding sites, their distribution at sea determined by the availability of food. If oceanic conditions are unsuitable, seabirds will emigrate to more productive areas, sometimes permanently if the bird is young. ^[41] After fledging, juvenile birds often disperse further than adults, and to different areas, so are commonly sighted far from a species' normal range. Some species, such as the auks, do not have a concerted migration effort, but drift southwards as the winter approaches. ^[15] Other species, such as some of the storm-petrels, diving petrels and cormorants, never disperse at all, staying near their breeding colonies year round. The storm-petrels are Seabirds in the family Hydrobatidae, part of the order Procellariiformes. The diving-petrels are Seabirds in the Bird order Procellariiformes The Bird family Phalacrocoracidae is represented by some 40 Species of cormorants and shags.

Away from the sea

While the definition of seabirds suggests that the birds in question spend their lives on the ocean, many seabird families have many species that spend some or even most of their lives inland away from the sea. Most strikingly, many species breed many tens, hundreds or even thousands of miles inland. Some of these species still return to the ocean to feed; for example, the Snow Petrel, the nests of which have been found 480 km (300 miles) inland on the Antarctic mainland, are unlikely to find anything to eat around their breeding sites. The Snow Petrel ( Pagodroma nivea) is a small pure white Fulmarine petrel with black underdown coal-black eyes small black bill and bluish gray feet ^[42] The Marbled Murrelet nests inland in old growth forest, seeking huge conifers with large branches to nest on. The Marbled Murrelet ( Brachyramphus marmoratus) is a small Seabird from the North Pacific. Ancient Woodland Old growth forest, (also termed primary forest, ancient forest, virgin forest, primeval forest, frontier ^[43] Other species, such as the California Gull, nest and feed inland on lakes, and then move to the coasts in the winter. The California Gull Larus californicus is a medium-sized Gull, smaller than the Herring Gull but larger than the Ring-billed Gull. A lake (from Latin lacus) is a Terrain feature (or Physical feature) a body of Liquid on the surface of a world that is localized to the ^[44] Some cormorant, pelican, gull and tern species have individuals that never visit the sea at all, spending their lives on lakes, rivers, swamps and, in the case of some of the gulls, cities and agricultural land. The Bird family Phalacrocoracidae is represented by some 40 Species of cormorants and shags. A pelican is a large water Bird with a distinctive pouch under the beak belonging to the Bird family Pelecanidae. Gulls (often informally Seagulls) are birds in the family Laridae Terns are Seabirds in the family Sternidae, previously considered a subfamily (Sterninae of the gull family Laridae (van Tuinen et al A swamp is a Wetland featuring temporary or permanent inundation of large areas of land by shallow bodies of water Agriculture refers to the production of goods through the growing of plants and fungi and the raising of domesticated Animals The study of agriculture In these cases it is thought that these terrestrial or freshwater birds evolved from marine ancestors. ^[7] Some seabirds, principally those that nest in tundra-like skuas and phalaropes, will migrate over land as well. In physical Geography, tundra is an area where the Tree growth is hindered by low temperatures and short growing seasons

The more marine species, such as petrels, auks, and gannets, are more restricted in their habits, but are occasionally seen inland as vagrants. This article is about the petrel seabirds For other uses see Petrel (disambiguation. This article is about a family of birds For the American ornithological journal see The Auk. Gannets are Seabirds in the family Sulidae, closely related to the boobies. This most commonly happens to young inexperienced birds, but can happen in great numbers to exhausted adults after large storms, an event known as a wreck,^[45] where they provide prized sightings for birders. A storm is any disturbed state of an astronomical body's atmosphere, especially affecting its surface and strongly implying Severe weather. Birdwatching or birding is the observation and study of Birds with the naked eye or through a visual enhancement device like Binoculars.

Relationship with humans

Seabirds and fisheries

Seabirds have had a long association with both fisheries and sailors, and both have drawn benefits and disadvantages from the relationship. For the fishing industry and the practice of fishing see Fishing.

Fishermen have traditionally used seabirds as indicators of both fish shoals,^[22] underwater banks that might indicate fish stocks, and of potential landfall. A shoal or sandbar (also called sandbank) is a somewhat Linear Landform within or extending into a body of Water, See also Sandbank A bank is a Shoal &mdasha comparatively shallow area or an underwater hill on the Continental shelf &mdashsurrounded by deeper In fact, the known association of seabirds with land was instrumental in allowing the Polynesians to locate tiny landmasses in the Pacific. Polynesia (from Greek: πολύς many, νῆσος island) is a Subregion of Oceania, comprising a large grouping of over ^[1] Seabirds have provided food for fishermen away from home, as well as bait. Famously, tethered cormorants have been used to catch fish directly. The Bird family Phalacrocoracidae is represented by some 40 Species of cormorants and shags. Indirectly, fisheries have also benefited from guano from colonies of seabirds acting as fertilizer for the surrounding seas. Guano (from the Quechua 'wanu' via Spanish) is the Feces of Seabirds Bats and seals Fertilizers ( also spelt fertiliser are chemical compounds given to Plants to promote growth they are usually applied either through the soil for uptake by plant

Negative effects on fisheries are mostly restricted to raiding by birds on aquaculture,^[46] although long-lining fisheries also have to deal with bait stealing. Aquaculture is the farming of freshwater and saltwater organisms including Molluscs Crustaceans and aquatic plants For other meanings of "longline" see Longline. Longline fishing is a commercial Fishing technique that uses hundreds or even Bait is any substance used to attract Prey, eg in a Mousetrap. There have been claims of prey depletion by seabirds of fishery stocks, and while there is some evidence of this, the effects of seabirds are considered smaller than that of marine mammals and predatory fish (like tuna). Marine mammals are a diverse group of roughly 120 species of Mammal that are primarily Ocean -dwelling or depend on the ocean for food Tuna, are several Species of ocean-dwelling Fish in the family Scombridae, mostly in the genus Thunnus. ^[1]

Seabirds (mostly Northern Fulmars) flocking at a long-lining vessel

Some seabird species have benefited from fisheries, particularly from discarded fish and offal. Offal is the Entrails and Internal organs of a Butchered Animal. These discards compose 30% of the food of seabirds in the North Sea, for example, and compose up to 70% of the total food of some seabird populations. The North Sea is a marginal, Epeiric sea of the Atlantic Ocean on the European Continental shelf. ^[47] This can have other impacts; for example, the spread of the Northern Fulmar through the United Kingdom is attributed in part to the availability of discards. The Northern Fulmar ( Fulmarus glacialis) or Arctic Fulmar lives in the north Atlantic and north Pacific. The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located ^[48] Discards generally benefit surface feeders, such as gannets and petrels, to the detriment of pursuit divers like penguins.

Fisheries also have negative effects on seabirds, and these effects, particularly on the long-lived and slow-breeding albatrosses, are a source of increasing concern to conservationists. The bycatch of seabirds entangled in nets or hooked on fishing lines has had a big impact on seabird numbers; for example, an estimated 100,000 albatrosses are hooked and drown each year on tuna lines set out by long-line fisheries. ^[49][50] Overall, many hundreds of thousands of birds are trapped and killed each year, a source of concern for some of the rarest species (for example, only 1,000 Short-tailed Albatrosses are known to still exist). The Short-tailed Albatross or Steller's Albatross ( Phoebastria albatrus) is a large rare Seabird from the North Pacific. Seabirds are also thought to suffer when overfishing occurs.

Exploitation

The hunting of seabirds and the collecting of seabird eggs have contributed to the declines of many species, and the extinction of several, including the Great Auk and the Spectacled Cormorant. Hunting is the practice of pursuing Animals for Food, Recreation, or Trade. In most Birds and Reptiles an egg ( Latin ovum) is the Zygote, resulting from Fertilization of the Ovum. In Biology and Ecology, extinction is the cessation of existence of a Species or group of taxa. The Great Auk, Pinguinus impennis, formerly of the Genus Alca, is a Bird that became extinct in the mid-19th century The Spectacled Cormorant or Pallas's Cormorant ( Phalacrocorax perspicillatus)is an extinct marine Bird of the Cormorant family Seabirds have been hunted for food by coastal peoples throughout history—one of the earliest instances known is in southern Chile, where archaeological excavations in middens has shown hunting of albatrosses, cormorants and shearwaters from 5000 BP. Chile, officially the Republic of Chile ( Spanish:) is a country in South America occupying a long and narrow Coastal strip wedged between the Archaeology, archeology, or archæology (from Greek grc ἀρχαιολογία archaiologia – grc ἀρχαῖος archaīos ^[51] This pressure has led to some species becoming extinct in many places; in particular, at least 20 species of an original 29 no longer breed on Easter Island. In the 19th century, the hunting of seabirds for fat deposits and feathers for the millinery trade reached industrial levels. Fats consist of a wide group of compounds that are generally soluble in organic solvents and largely insoluble in water For other uses of this term see Industry (disambiguation An industry (from Latin industrius, "diligent industrious" Muttonbirding (harvesting shearwater chicks) developed as important industries in both New Zealand and Tasmania, and the name of one species, the Providence Petrel, is derived from its seemingly miraculous arrival on Norfolk Island where it provided a windfall for starving European settlers. Muttonbirding is a seasonal harvesting activity which may be recreational or commercial of the chicks of Petrels especially Shearwater species for food oil and The Providence Petrel ( Pterodroma solandri) is a species that burrows in one location isolated Lord Howe Island, some 800km from the Australian mainland Norfolk Island ( Norfuk: Norfuk Ailen) is a small inhabited island in the Pacific Ocean located between Australia, New Zealand ^[52] In the Falkland Islands, hundreds of thousands of penguins were harvested for their oil each year. Seabird eggs have also long been an important source of food for sailors undertaking long sea voyages, as well as being taken when settlements grow in areas near a colony. Eggers from San Francisco took almost half a million eggs a year from the Farallon Islands in the mid-19th century, a period in the islands' history from which the seabird species are still recovering. The City and County of San Francisco is the fourth most populous city The Farallon Islands, or Farallones, are a group of Islands and rocks found in the Gulf of the Farallones, off the coast of San Francisco, ^[53]

Both hunting and egging continue today, although not at the levels that occurred in the past, and generally in a more controlled manner. For example, the Māori of Stewart Island/Rakiura continue to harvest the chicks of the Sooty Shearwater as they have done for centuries, using traditional methods (called kaitiakitanga) to manage the harvest, but now work with the University of Otago in studying the populations. This article discusses the Māori people of New Zealand For their language see Māori language, and for other meanings see Māori (disambiguation. The Sooty Shearwater ( Puffinus griseus) is a medium-large Shearwater in the Seabird family Procellariidae. Kaitiaki is a New Zealand term used for the Māori concept of Guardianship, for the Sky, the Sea, and the Land. The University of Otago ( Te Whare Wānanga o Otāgo) in Dunedin is New Zealand 's oldest university with over 20000 students enrolled during In Greenland, however, uncontrolled hunting is pushing many species into steep decline. Greenland (Kalaallit Nunaat meaning "Land of the Greenlanders" Grønland is a self-governing Danish Province located between the ^[54]

Other threats

Other human factors have led to declines and even extinctions in seabird populations, colonies and species. Of these, perhaps the most serious are introduced species. An introduced species (also known as naturalized species or exotic species) is an Organism that is not indigenous to a given location but Seabirds, breeding predominantly on small isolated islands, have lost many predator defence behaviours. ^[37] Feral cats are capable of taking seabirds as large as albatrosses, and many introduced rodents, such as the Pacific Rat, can take eggs hidden in burrows. A feral cat (or stray cat, alley cat) is a Cat which has been separated from Domestication through abandonment loss or running away and becomes The Polynesian Rat, or Pacific Rat ( Rattus exulans) known to the Māori as kiore, is the third most widespread species of Rat in Introduced goats, cattle, rabbits and other herbivores can lead to problems, particularly when species need vegetation to protect or shade their young. The domestic goat ( Capra aegagrus hircus) is a subspecies of goat Domesticated from the Wild goat of Southwest Asia and Eastern Europe Cattle, colloquially referred to as cows, are domesticated Ungulates a member of the Subfamily Bovinae of the family Rabbits are small Mammals in the family Leporidae of the order Lagomorpha, found in several parts of the world Herbivory is a form of Predation in which an Organism, known as a herbivore, consumes principally Autotrophs ref name=Campbell>Campbell ^[55] Disturbance of breeding colonies by humans is often a problem as well—visitors, even well-meaning tourists, can flush brooding adults off a colony leaving chicks and eggs vulnerable to predators. Tourism is Travel for Recreational or Leisure purposes The World Tourism Organization defines tourists as people who "travel

This Crested Auklet was oiled in Alaska during the M/V Selendang Ayu spill of 2004. The M/V Selendang Ayu was a Malaysian Cargo ship registered to the IMC Group

The build-up of toxins and pollutants in seabirds is also a concern. A toxin ( Greek:, toxikon, lit (poison for use on arrows is a Poisonous substance produced by living cells or organisms that is active at very low Pollution is the introduction of contaminants into an environment that causes instability disorder harm or discomfort to the physical systems or living organisms they are in Seabirds, being apex predators, suffered from the ravages of DDT until it was banned; among other effects, DDT was implicated in embryo development problems and the skewed sex ratio of Western Gulls in southern California. DDT (from its trivial name D ichloro- D iphenyl- T richloroethane is one of the best known synthetic Pesticides It is a chemical with a long The Western Gull, Larus occidentalis, is a large white-headed Gull that lives on the western coast of North America. ^[56] Oil spills are also a threat to seabird species, as both a toxin and because the feathers of the birds become saturated by the oil, causing them to lose their waterproofing. For the fictional character see Oil Slick (Transformers. An oil spill is the release of a Liquid Petroleum Hydrocarbon into ^[57] Oil pollution threatens species with restricted ranges or already depressed populations.

Conservation

The threats faced by seabirds have not gone unnoticed by scientists or the conservation movement. The conservation movement also known as nature conservation is a political social and to some extent scientific movement that seeks to protect natural resources including As early as 1903, U. S. President Theodore Roosevelt was convinced of the need to declare Pelican Island in Florida a National Wildlife Refuge to protect the bird colonies (including the nesting Brown Pelicans),^[58] and in 1909 he protected the Farallon Islands. Theodore Roosevelt (ˈroʊzəvɛlt October 27 1858 January 6 1919 also known as T Pelican Island National Wildlife Refuge is a United States National Wildlife Refuge located near Vero Beach Florida. Florida ( is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States, bordering Alabama to the northwest and Georgia to the National Wildlife Refuge is a designation for certain Protected areas of the United States managed by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service. The brown pelican ( Pelecanus occidentalis) is the smallest of the eight species of Pelican, although it is a large bird in nearly every other regard The Farallon Islands, or Farallones, are a group of Islands and rocks found in the Gulf of the Farallones, off the coast of San Francisco, Today many important seabird colonies are given some measure of protection, from Heron Island in Australia to Triangle Island in British Columbia. Heron Island is a Coral Cay located near the Tropic of Capricorn in the southern Great Barrier Reef, 72 km north-east of Gladstone For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Australia topics. British Columbia (ˌbrɪtɨʃ kəˈlʌmbiə ( BC) ( (la Colombie-Britannique C

Island restoration techniques, pioneered by New Zealand, enable the removal of exotic invaders from increasingly large islands. The ecological restoration of islands, or island restoration, is the application of the principles of Ecological restoration to Islands and island groups New Zealand is an Island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses (the North Island and the South Island Feral cats have been removed from Ascension Island, Arctic Foxes from many islands in the Aleutian Islands,^[59] and rats from Campbell Island. Ascension Island is an island in the South Atlantic Ocean, around from the coast of Africa The Arctic Fox ( Vulpes lagopus) also known as the White Fox or Snow Fox, is a small Fox native to cold Arctic regions of the The Aleutian Islands (possibly from Chukchi aliat, " Island " are a chain of more than 300 small volcanic islands forming a Volcanic The removal of these introduced species has led to increases in numbers of species under pressure and even the return of extirpated ones. After the removal of cats from Ascension Island, seabirds began to nest there again for the first time in over a hundred years. ^[60]

Seabird mortality caused by long-line fisheries can be greatly reduced by techniques such as setting long-line bait at night, dying the bait blue, setting the bait underwater, increasing the amount of weight on lines and by using bird scarers,^[61] and their deployment is increasingly required by many national fishing fleets. The international ban on the use of drift nets has also helped reduce the mortality of seabirds and other marine wildlife. Drift netting is a Fishing technique where nets, called drift nets, are allowed to drift free in a sea or lake

One of the Millennium Projects in the UK was the Scottish Seabird Centre, near the important bird sanctuaries on Bass Rock, Fidra and the surrounding islands. The Scottish Seabird Centre is a popular award-winning visitor attraction in North Berwick, East Lothian, Scotland. The Bass Rock, or simply The Bass, is an island in the outer part of the Firth of Forth in the east of Scotland, approximately one mile off North Fidra (archaically Fidrey) is an uninhabited island in the Firth of Forth, north-west of North Berwick, on the east coast of Scotland. The area is home to huge colonies of gannets, puffins, skuas and other seabirds. Puffin describes any of four Auk species (or alcids) in the Bird genus Fratercula (Latin little brother — probably a reference The centre allows visitors to watch live video from the islands as well as learn about the threats the birds face and how we can protect them, and has helped to significantly raise the profile of seabird conservation in the UK. Seabird tourism can provide income for coastal communities as well as raise the profile of seabird conservation. For example, the Northern Royal Albatross colony at Taiaroa Head in New Zealand attracts 40,000 visitors a year. The Northern Royal Albatross ( Diomedea sanfordi) is a large Seabird from the Albatross family. Taiaroa Head is a headland at the end of the Otago Peninsula in New Zealand, overlooking the mouth of the Otago Harbour. ^[14]

The plight of albatross and large seabirds, as well as other marine creatures, being taken as bycatch by long-line fisheries, has been addressed by a large number of non-governmental organizations (including BirdLife International, the American Bird Conservancy, and the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds). BirdLife International (formerly known as the International Council for Bird Preservation, not to be confused with Birds International) is the international conservation The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds ( RSPB) is a British Charitable organisation which works to promote conservation and protection This led to the Agreement on the Conservation of Albatrosses and Petrels, a legally binding treaty designed to protect these threatened species, which has been ratified by eleven countries as of 2008 (namely Argentina, Australia, Chile, Ecuador, France, New Zealand, Norway, Peru, South Africa, Spain, and the United Kingdom). The Agreement on the Conservation of Albatrosses and Petrels (ACAP is a legally binding international treaty signed in 2001 For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Ecuador topics. This article is about the country For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic France topics. Peru (Perú Piruw Piruw officially the Republic of Peru ( reˈpuβlika del peˈɾu is a country in western South America. The Republic of South Africa (also known by other official names) is a country located at the southern tip of the continent of Africa Spain () or the Kingdom of Spain (Reino de España is a country located mostly in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located ^[62]

Role in culture

Depiction of a pelican with chicks on a stained glass window, Saint Mark's Church, Gillingham, Kent. KENT (1400 AM) is a Radio station broadcasting a Adult Standards/MOR format

Many seabirds are little studied and poorly known, due to living far out to sea and breeding in isolated colonies. However, some seabirds, particularly, the albatrosses and gulls, have broken into popular consciousness. The albatrosses have been described as "the most legendary of birds",^[63] and have a variety of myths and legends associated with them, and today it is widely considered unlucky to harm them, although the notion that sailors believed that is a myth^[64] which derives from Samuel Taylor Coleridge's famous poem, "The Rime of the Ancient Mariner", in which a sailor is punished for killing an albatross by having to wear its corpse around his neck. The word mythology (from the Greek grc μυθολογία mythología, meaning "a story-telling a legendary lore" A legend ( Latin, legenda, "things to be read" is a Narrative of human actions that are perceived both by teller and listeners to Luck (also called fortunity) is a chance happening, or that which happens beyond a person's control. An urban legend or urban myth is a form of modern Folklore consisting of stories thought to be factual by those circulating them Samuel Taylor Coleridge ( 21 October 1772 &ndash 25 July 1834) was an English Poet, Critic and philosopher The Rime of the Ancient Mariner (original The Rime of the Ancyent Marinere) is the longest major Poem by the English Poet

Instead of the Cross the Albatross
About my neck was hung

Sailors did, however, consider it unlucky to touch a storm-petrel, especially one that has landed on the ship. The storm-petrels are Seabirds in the family Hydrobatidae, part of the order Procellariiformes. ^[63]

Gulls are one of the most commonly seen seabirds, given their use of human-made habitats (such as cities and dumps) and their often fearless nature. A habitat (which is Latin for "it inhabits" is an Ecological or environmental area that is inhabited by a particular Species. For other uses see Water treatment and Land reclamation. A landfill, also known as a dump (and historically as They therefore also have made it into the popular consciousness - they have been used metaphorically, as in Jonathan Livingston Seagull by Richard Bach, or to denote a closeness to the sea, such as their use in the The Lord of the Rings – both in the insignia of Gondor and therefore Númenor (used in the design of the films), and to call Legolas to (and across) the sea. Metaphor (from the Greek: μεταφορά - metaphora, meaning "transfer" is language that directly compares seemingly unrelated subjects Jonathan Livingston Seagull, written by Richard Bach, is a Fable in Novella form about a seagull learning about life and Richard David Bach (b June 23, 1936, Oak Park Illinois) is an American writer The Lord of the Rings is an epic Insignia (the plural of Latin insigne: emblem symbol is a Symbol or Token of personal power, Status or Office Gondor is a fictional kingdom in J R R Tolkien 's writings described as the greatest realm of Men in the west of Middle-earth by the end of the Númenor (ˈnuːmɛnɔɹ is a Fictional place in J R R Tolkien 's writings which the author intended to be an allusion to the legendary Atlantis. Appearances Literature Legolas was the son of Thranduil, King of the Woodland Realm of Northern Mirkwood, who appears as "the Elvenking" Other species have also made an impact; pelicans have long been associated with mercy and altruism because of an early Western Christian myth that they split open their breast to feed their starving chicks. A pelican is a large water Bird with a distinctive pouch under the beak belonging to the Bird family Pelecanidae. Altruism is selfless concern for the welfare of others It is a traditional Virtue in many cultures and central to many religious traditions Christianity ( Greek Χριστιανισμός from the word Xριστός ( Christ)is a monotheistic Religion centered on the life and teachings ^[19]

Seabird families

The following are the groups of birds normally classed as seabirds.

Sphenisciformes (Antarctic and southern waters; 16 species)

• Spheniscidae penguins

Procellariiformes (Tubenoses: pan-oceanic and pelagic; 93 species)

• Diomedeidae albatrosses
• Procellariidae fulmars, prions, shearwaters, gadfly and other petrels
• Pelacanoididae diving-petrels
• Hydrobatidae storm-petrels

Pelecaniformes (Worldwide; 57 species)

• Pelecanidae pelicans
• Sulidae gannets and boobies
• Phalacrocoracidae cormorants
• Fregatidae frigatebirds

• Phaethontidae tropicbirds

Charadriiformes (Worldwide; 305 species, but only the families listed are classed as seabirds. Penguins ( order Sphenisciformes, family Spheniscidae) are a group of aquatic, flightless Birds living almost Penguins ( order Sphenisciformes, family Spheniscidae) are a group of aquatic, flightless Birds living almost Procellariiformes is an order of Seabirds that comprises four families: the Albatrosses procellariids, Storm-petrels and Diving Albatrosses, of the biological family Diomedeidae, are large Seabirds allied to the procellariids, Storm-petrels and Diving-petrels The two Fulmars are closely related Seabirds occupying the same niche in different Oceans. The prions are small Petrels in the Genus Pachyptila. Together with the Blue Petrel, they form one of the four groups within the Procellariidae Shearwaters are medium-sized long-winged Seabirds There are more than 20 Species of shearwaters a few larger ones in the genus Calonectris The gadfly petrels are Seabirds in the Bird order Procellariiformes. This article is about the petrel seabirds For other uses see Petrel (disambiguation. The diving-petrels are Seabirds in the Bird order Procellariiformes The storm-petrels are Seabirds in the family Hydrobatidae, part of the order Procellariiformes. The Pelecaniformes are an order of medium-sized and large waterbirds found worldwide A pelican is a large water Bird with a distinctive pouch under the beak belonging to the Bird family Pelecanidae. Gannets are Seabirds in the family Sulidae, closely related to the boobies. The Bird family Phalacrocoracidae is represented by some 40 Species of cormorants and shags. The frigatebirds are a family Fregatidae, of Seabirds There are five Species in the single Genus Fregata. Tropicbirds are a family, Phaethontidae, of tropical pelagic Seabirds There are three species in one Genus Phaethon Charadriiformes is a diverse order of small to medium-large Birds It includes about 350 Species and has members in all parts of the world )

• Stercorariidae skuas
• Laridae gulls
• Sternidae terns
• Rhynchopidae skimmers
• Alcidae auks

For an alternative taxonomy of these groups, see also Sibley-Ahlquist taxonomy. Skuas are Seabirds in the family Stercorariidae. The three smaller skuas are called jaegers in North America Gulls (often informally Seagulls) are birds in the family Laridae Terns are Seabirds in the family Sternidae, previously considered a subfamily (Sterninae of the gull family Laridae (van Tuinen et al The Skimmers, Rhynchopidae, are a small family of Tern -like Birds in the order Charadriiformes which also includes the Waders Gulls This article is about a family of birds For the American ornithological journal see The Auk. The Sibley-Ahlquist taxonomy is a radical bird Taxonomy proposed by Charles Sibley and Jon Edward Ahlquist.

See also

• List of birds
• Marine vertebrates

References

External links

• Project Titi; a collaboration between the Māori of Stewart Island and the University of Otago to manage Sooty Shearwater harvests
• BirdLife International; Save the Albatross Campaign
• Marine Ornithology, the Journal of Seabird Science and Conservation
• www.seabird.org, official site of the Scottish Seabird Centre