FORAGING MOVEMENTS OF THE SHY ALBATROSS DIOMEDEA-CAUTA BREEDING IN AUSTRALIA - IMPLICATIONS FOR INTERACTIONS WITH LONGLINE FISHERIES

Satellite telemetry was used to identify the foraging zones of Shy Alb atrosses Diomedea cauta breeding at two sites off Tasmania, Australia (Albatross Island in western Bass Strait and Pedra Branca to the south ) to assess their level of interaction with longline fisheries. Adult birds from both colonies fed locally both in and outside the breeding season, Breeding birds from Albatross Island foraged over the Australi an continental shelf or slope waters off northwest Tasmania, while the se from Pedra Branca foraged between the colony and the southeastern e dge of the continental shelf. The distances travelled by the birds and the duration of their foraging trips varied during the breeding cycle and tended to decrease as eggs approached hatching, Adults which were tracked near the end of the breeding season (March-April, n = 7 birds ) deserted their chicks prematurely, and while dispersing further than incubating or brooding birds, they remained over the continental shel f and slope waters off southeast Australia. Home range analyses indica ted 41% overlap between foraging zones of birds during successive bree ding stages. Dispersal during the postbreeding period ex-tended the fo raging zones with less overlap between individuals (10% for Albatross Island and 19% for Pedra Branca). The recent contraction of the Japane se Southern Bluefin Tuna longline fishery to the south and east coasts of Tasmania has resulted in extensive overlap with adult Shy Albatros ses from Pedra Branca, but appears to pose a minimal threat to adult b irds from Albatross Island. Coupled with the concomitant increase in t he Australian domestic tuna longlining industry, adult Shy Albatrosses from southern Tasmania (Pedra Branca and the Mewstone) are vulnerable to incidental capture throughout their annual cycle.