Talk About It!
Have you seen any Gooney birds?
Asked by Stephanie from Lanakai Elementary on Sep 14, 2002.
I have a question for the "Bird Queen-Beth." Have you seen any gooney birds on the expedition?
Answered by Beth on Sep 15, 2002.
Dear Stephanie,
We haven't seen a single gooney bird so far on the voyage because it is albatross vacation time and they are all foraging up north of here in the Bering Sea and around Japan, Alaska, and Canada. The last chicks fledged in early August and have joined their parents up north, where they are enjoying long days and high ocean productivity (meaning plenty of delicious squid). The people who live down here are anxiously waiting for the first gooneys to return to their breeding grounds. This should occur in late October. The biologists on each island always hope that they will be the first to see the birds return. There are plenty of other birds around, so we are enjoying Masked Boobies, Brown Noddies and 12 or so other species of seabirds on the islands right now. We are also seeing the Kolea passing by on their way back to Hawaii after their breeding season in Alaska.
Thanks for the good question, Stephanie!
Differences in fish populations
Asked by Student from Windward Community College on Sep 19, 2002.
The Northwestern Hawaiian Islands are protected by U.S. fishing regulations. Is there a difference in size and quanity of fish, as compared to the main Hawaiian islands? How do you study this?
Answered by the NOW-RAMP Crew on Sep 20, 2002.
Fish in the NWHI are larger in size and number than in the main Hawaiian islands. You can download the NOWRAMP 2000 report for a more complete description of the fish that are found here.
Galapagos shark numbers
Asked by Jacqueline on Oct 21, 2002.
How many Galapagos sharks are there now in Hawai'i? How many were there before?
Answered by Mark Heckman from Waikiki Aquarium on Oct 22, 2002.
Thanks for your question! Galapagos sharks become more common as you move up the Hawaiian Island chain, and grey reef sharks become less common. No one knows why. In general, Galapagos sharks have a very interesting distribution. They are found in widely disjunct areas (areas far from each other), typically around oceanic islands. They tend to be either uncommon, or very common. In other words, in some areas there are hardly any of them, and in other areas they are the most numerous shark in the area. There is no middle ground. No one knows why, but it is questions like these that make being a marine biologist so interesting. There is a lot still to study in the oceans!
Galapagos sharks: native?
Asked by Jacqueline on Oct 21, 2002.
Are Galapagos sharks endemic, introduced or native?
Answered by the NOW-RAMP Crew on Oct 22, 2002.
The Galapagos shark is native to the Hawaiian islands but is not endemic. Galapagos sharks are found in tropical oceans worldwide.
Strange critter in tidepools
Asked by Laura from UH on Nov 19, 2002.
On a recent trip to Lanai, we saw a strange phenomenon in the tidepools: long, white strings radiating out from a central point. They appeared to be growing before our eyes and reaching out to similar structures across the tidepool. The only other residents in the pools seemed to be purple sea urchins and small fish. Is this a reporductive system for urchins, and if so, do NWHI urchin species reproduce in a similar fashion?
Answered by Andy Collins, NWHI Coral Reef Ecosystem Reserve on Nov 20, 2002.
This is probably a critter called the spaghetti worm. You may want to confirm this in a book on Hawaiian reefs. It is not a reproductive system for the urchin.
Why aren't there more Hawaiian Monk Seal pictures?
Asked by Wayne on Dec 21, 2002.
Why does your site have so few pictures (or video stories) about one of the most charasmatic, and critically endangered animals found in the NWHI, the Hawaiian Monk Seal? One animal that many residents of Hawaii are likely to have seen on the main islands.
Answered by Andy Collins, NWHI Coral Reef Ecosystem Reserve on Dec 22, 2002.
Well, that is a good question! We did not have more information on the Hawaiian monk seal during the expedition because scientists on the expedition were not involved in Monk seal research. Also, another branch of NOAA, Ocean Explorer did a feature on monk seals at the same time that we were working on this website. This feature can be found at: http://oceanexplorer.noaa.gov/explorations/02hawaii/background/monk_seals/monk_seals.html
One other reason why you did not see more information on monk seals was because we were trying to highlight many of the other aspects of this wild and spectacular ecosystem that people do not often see, or think about, such as invertebrates. Charismatic megafauna such as monk seals, though certainly cute, fascinating and important, are but one animal in an ecosystem comprised of 7,000 or more marine species.
We do appreciate your feedback though and will see what we can do in the future to provide more information on this endangered species.
Albatross questions
Asked by Jarrett Students Per. 1 on Feb 26, 2004.
We heard that Albatross can stay in the air for a few years without touching land. We are wondering if the Albatross sleeps at all during this time.
Answered by Andy from NOAA on Mar 4, 2004.
Birds certainly experience a deep rest or in people terms they sleep when they rest on the water. They actually tuck their head in under their wing while they sit on water.
They do not spend two years just flying. They often rest on the water and some could go "hang out" on an island to rest temporarily. Albatross can come back to the place they were reared to "practice" their mating dance as early as the next year after they were hatched, but they are not able to actually reproduce until they are 5 to 7 years of age.
There are no animals living on Midway which prey upon albatross eggs.
Thanks to the strictly enforced National Wildlife Refuge regulations no
warm blooded animals including pet cats or dogs are allowed to
disembark a plane or ship. To keep rats out, cargo and boat traffic in and out of the harbor are strictly regulated to prevent any accidental introduction of rats. When a ship is due to arrive onto Midway, the vessel must be inspected to be sure that it is rat free. Secondary precautions are taken and poison bait is set out on the pier when a visiting ship arrives...Mice are unfortunately everywhere.
When the Navy started the construction of the Naval Air Station and
Submarine base on Sand and Eastern Islands in 1940, unfortunately rats were unintentionally introduced. The rats thrived on the islands and all the seabirds were negatively impacted. There were at one time thousands of rats which ate lots of petrel and wedge-tailed shearwater eggs because their eggs are softer and smaller and thus more vulnerable to predation than albatross eggs. On a rare occasion an albatross egg might have been prey for a really large rat. Rats were responsible for a serious sharp decline in the Bonin petrel population. There were a few hundred nests while it was an active Naval base to today the Refuge has well over 100,000 nesting. By 1998 rats were completely eliminated from all three islands that make up Midway Atoll National Wildlife Refuge. As part of the U.S. Naval Base closure responsibilities, the U.S. Navy funded and with FWS support an extensive rat eradication program during the mid 1990's. This eradication program was one of the most successful alien species removals to improve wildlife habitat to date.
Ann Melinda Bell
U.S Fish and Wildlife Service
NOTE NEW PHONE #808-792-9532/fax:792-9583
Albatross and predators
Asked by Jarrett Middle School Per 3 on Feb 26, 2004.
How come there are so many Albatross in the wild when they can only lay one single egg at a time.
Answered by Andy from NOAA on Mar 4, 2004.
There are no animals living on Midway which prey upon albatross eggs. Thanks to the strictly enforced National Wildlife Refuge regulations no warm blooded animals including pet cats or dogs are allowed to disembark a
plane or ship. To keep rats out, cargo and boat traffic in and out of the harbor are strictly regulated to prevent any accidental introduction of rats. When a ship is due to arrive onto Midway, the vessel must be inspected to be sure that it is rat free. Secondary precautions are taken
and poison bait is set out on the pier when a visiting ship
arrives...Mice are unfortunately everywhere.
When the Navy started the construction of the Naval Air Station and Submarine base on Sand and Eastern Islands in 1940, unfortunately rats were unintentionally introduced. The rats thrived on the islands and all the seabirds were negatively impacted. There were at one time thousands of
rats which ate lots of petrel and wedge-tailed shearwater eggs because their eggs are softer and smaller and thus more vulnerable to predation than albatross eggs. On a rare occasion an albatross egg might have been prey for a really large rat. Rats were responsible for a serious sharp
decline in the Bonin petrel population. There were a few hundred nests while it was an active Naval base to today the Refuge has well over 100,000 nesting. By 1998 rats were completely eliminated from all three islands that make up Midway Atoll National Wildlife Refuge. As part of the U.S.
Naval Base closure responsibilities, the U.S. Navy funded and with FWS support an extensive rat eradication program during the mid 1990's. This eradication program was one of the most successful alien species
removals to improve wildlife habitat to date.
Ann Melinda Bell
U.S Fish and Wildlife Service
NOTE NEW PHONE #808-792-9532/fax:792-9583
Albatross in the Wild
Asked by Jarrett Middle School Per.6 on Feb 26, 2004.
Are there animals on Midway that can eat the eggs of the Albatross?
Answered by Andy from NOAA on Mar 4, 2004.
One of the reasons is because they are very longed lived birds. The oldest known Laysan albatross is 49 years old. We know this fact because of perseverance and lots of luck. A band number was retrieved from a Laysan albatross tracing its first band back to 49 years prior when it was a
juvenile. Just imagine how old they really can live to be? If Laysan and black-footed albatross start breeding at 5 to 7 years of age, about how many offspring do albatross produce in a life time?
There may seem to be lots of albatross in the wild today. However, before the beginning of the slaughter of millions of seabirds during the feather trade industry in the NWHIslands and before the introduction of non-
native mammals in the main Hawaiian Islands, such as rats, dogs, pigs and mongoose, there were hundreds of thousands more nesting throughout the Hawaiian archipelago. There is also the illusion that there are LOTS and LOTS of albatross because they are nesting on every square yard in the NWHIslands. Keep in mind though, these are marine creatures, they spend most of their life at sea and they only come to land to mate and rear a young. Because there is only a few square miles of land in the vast Pacific which doesn't have non-native animals that doesn't leave much
room for albatross to safely nest. In other words, the predator free nesting sites are going to be very crowded leaving one to believe there are LOTS of
albatross.
Today the biggest known threats to Laysan and black-footed albatross include:
1)The hooking methods used in the longline fishing industry cause albatross to be hooked as they forage on the fishing bait. They are then quickly pulled under the water and drown.
2) The possible decline in the availability of the food they prey on caused by natural effects such as El Nino and human caused effects such as pollution and fishing.
3) Marine debris particularly small bits of plastic and large fishing nets kill unknown number of seabirds and other marine life.
Here are a couple of good websites - BirdLife International's Save the Albatross Campaign and American Bird Conservancy's Albatross Action Campaign. Both have a lot of excellent information -- the BirdLife one in
particular is quite comprehensive and has links to lots of related international initiatives and information sources.
http://www.birdlife.net/action/campaigns/save_the_albatross/index.html
http://www.albatrossaction.org
Ann Melinda Bell
U.S Fish and Wildlife Service
NOTE NEW PHONE #808-792-9532/fax:792-9583
Was it an albatross?
Asked by Jarrett Period 1 Students on Mar 2, 2005.
Students notice big white birds that fly over/by Sea life Park. Are these birds Albatross?
Answered by Paulo from University of Hawaii on Mar 3, 2005.
Hello there! It is very possible that what your students saw were albatross- these are the largest birds in the North Pacific, so if it was large and white, it could have been a Laysan albatross. Although the vast majority of their population in Hawaii is found in the NWHI, some Laysan albatross have been making a comeback in the Main Hawaiian Islands. On Oahu, several groups of Laysan albatross have been seen attempting to nest on the North Shore, and sometimes can be seen around Ka’ena Point. With proper conservation efforts, these magnificent birds could be sighted more frequently in the future around the Main Hawaiian Islands.
Lifespan of an albatross
Asked by Jarrett Students Period 4 on Mar 3, 2005.
What is the average lifespan of an Albatross? Is there a rough estimation as to what percentage of Albatross actually live a full life with a natural death?
Answered by Angela Anders, US Fish & Wildlife on Oct 5, 2005.
The maximum lifespan of Laysan and Black-footed Albatrosses is approximately 45 years. For all bird species, the probability of death remains relatively constant throughout a bird's lifetime, so for a species with a 45-year lifespan, approximately 2% of the individuals in a population would survive to that age.
Departing: NWHI; Arriving: California
Asked by Jarrett Students Period 7 on Mar 3, 2005.
About how long would it take for an Albatross to travel to California from NWHI?
Answered by Angela Anders, US Fish & Wildlife on Oct 5, 2005.
Based on satellite tracking data of Laysan and Black-footed Albatrosses, it would take one of these birds approximately two weeks to fly to California from the NWHI.
Yao Ming vs. Albatross
Asked by Adian Sos on Mar 3, 2005.
is an albatross's wing bigger than yao mings hand sticking out
Answered by Paulo from University of Hawaii on Oct 5, 2005.
Laysan and Black-footed Albatrosses have approximately 6-foot wing spans -- longer than most people's arms sticking out. In people, normally their reach with outstretched arms is very close to their actual height. Very tall persons, like basketball player Yao Ming, can have a reach that surpasses that of most albatross: his "wingspan" (the reach with both arms sticking out) is reported to be about 7 feet, 5 inches (he is 7 feet and 6 inches tall)!
Tiger sharks in Kure
Asked by ed from none on Apr 5, 2005.
Are the tiger sharks still around kure island and in the lagoon
Answered by Paulo from UH on Oct 7, 2005.
Yes, there are tiger sharks still around Kure atoll. Researchers have just caught (!) and tagged several tiger sharks there recently, and are looking forward collecting the data next year. Very brave people of science.
Annual rainfall on Kure Atoll.
Asked by paul from savethemonks.org on Mar 1, 2009.
What amount of rainfall accumalaution occurs on the Kure Atoll annually?
Thank you.
Paul
Answered by Andy from NOAA on Mar 11, 2009.
Kure gets 40 inches of rainfall annually.
