The Chatham Albatross, one of the world’s most endangered birds, is no longer quite as endangered as once it was, according to Canterbury researcher Paul Scofield.
The birds’ population has stabilised over the last few decades, and it has been downgraded to ‘vulnerable’ on the latest Red List.
An excerpt: (read in full here)
“Counts indicate the population has recovered since a violent storm in 1985 wrecked nests and destroyed eggs. Safe longline practices agreed to by New Zealand fishing companies have dramatically cut the number of birds fatally trapped on hooks towed behind trawlers.
“About 5300 breeding pairs of Chatham albatross nest there on cone-shaped lumps made of bones, feathers and rock chips pasted together with guano or bird droppings.”