漂泊信天翁

正漂泊信天翁(Diomedea exulans)隶属于鹱形目(Procellariiformes)信天翁科(Diomedeidae)。体长107～135 cm,体重5.9～12.7 kg。是现存鸟类中展翼最宽的鸟类,展翼可达3.4 m,成体通体白色,雄性仅翼尖和后缘黑色,雌性翼黑色部分较雄性     

海鸟信天翁

在南印度洋有一片多风的海域,位于南纬四十度至五十度之间,那里常年西风怒号,巨浪排空,被航海家视为险要航途。可是这里却是信天翁的乐园。它们翼长而尖,在风急浪高的恶劣气候里,展翅翱翔于惊涛駭浪之上。善于滑翔的信天翁借助风势,在一日内能飞行上千里。可算是鸟类中的飞行冠军,并有环球飞行记录。信天翁属信天翁目是一种大型海洋漂泊性的鸟类。其体形最大者展翅可达3.5米,羽毛呈白色或烟灰色。据考查,信天翁是现存鸟类中寿命最长的一种,平均寿命为50—60年,最长者可达80年。有趣的是,信天翁在“婚姻”方面竞与人类有相似之处,人们常     

信天翁的环球飞行

信天翁在繁殖季节之间的18个月里到过哪里?一项新的研究指出．它们其中的一些在环球飞行，有一些绕地球转了2圈，也有一些在离繁殖地相对较近的南大西洋中徘徊：通过跟踪信天翁在非繁殖期的活动，英国科学家找到了对灰头信天翁可能很关键的其他栖息地．这种信天翁是地球上最濒危的鸟类：在繁殖季节，信天翁在南大洋中的捕食范围已经为人们所知，但是对繁殖期外它们的活动人们所知甚少。     

鹏鸟(Pengornis)一新材料及其对反鸟特征演化的指示意义（英文）

鹏鸟(Pengornis)是早白垩世已知体型最大的反鸟类,其骨骼兼有反鸟类和今鸟类的特征。报道了辽西九佛堂组新发现的一件鹏鸟的亚成年个体标本,代表了该属鸟类除侯氏鹏鸟(Pengornis houi)正型标本外的已知第二件标本,暂归入鹏鸟未定种(Pengornis sp.)。该标本头骨与头后骨骼近乎完整保存,并附有羽毛印痕,仅缺失部分右前肢和部分左后肢。新标本首次提供了鹏鸟胸骨与基干反鸟类原羽鸟(Protopteryx)及基干今鸟类古喙鸟(Archaeorhynchus)相似的形态特征,肯定了鹏鸟的基干位置,并讨论了其在鸟类胸骨演化中的意义。新标本对前肢和后肢(特别是脚趾)等的许多特征也有补充,表明其应当属于树栖生活的鸟类。     

河北大学博物馆生物部鸟类标本的统计分析

河北大学博物馆现有鸟类标本257种,其中在中国分布的鸟类有250种,隶属于19目59科160属;属国家重点保护的鸟类共58种;被列入<中国濒危动物红皮书的鸟类有35种;被列入中日候鸟协定的鸟类89种;被列入中澳候鸟协定的鸟类24种.属于<国家保护的有益的或者有重要经济、科学研究价值的陆生野生动物名录的鸟类166种.同时介绍了馆藏鸟类标本的主要来源.     

鸟类知识介绍——鸟类标本的采集与制作

鸟类标本的采集和制作方法鸟类标本是研究鸟类的重要资料,因此,掌握鸟类标本的采集和制作方法是十分必要的。现就有关问题简述如下。一、出发前的准备(一)制定计划。明确目的任务,这样才能避免工作中的盲目性。例如目的是作某一地区的一般性调查,就应该广泛地采集该地区的各种鸟类,力求每种都要采到,但每种标本的数量就不一定重复太多;如果目的是了解鸟类同农业的益害关系,就要选择农作区,采集的对象就应该是最常见而数量又比较多的优势种,标本数量特别是鸟胃就要求愈多愈好。(二)查阅文献资料。主要是为了了解考察地区是否有人进行过工作,…     

鸟类假剥制标本的制作

对于保存于制的鸟类皮肤和羽毛,主要通过制作假剥制标本来实现。假利制标本又称冰棒标本（供从事鸟类科学研究工作实用的、可作为科学资料保存的标本）,是鸟类研究的参照物,也是大多数自然历史博物馆和大学生物系用于展示和教学而收集的对象。鸟类的体型多种多样,但制作方法基本一致。工工具及材料解剖盘、解剖刀、剪刀、镊子、骨剪、手术针、缝合线、棉花、竹根、石膏粉、防腐剂等。2材料选择由于获得的鸟有时间差或地域环境影响,制作标本时要选择新鲜的。特别是在热带地区,几小时鸟就会腐败,羽毛脱落,内脏分解。而冷冻的鸟类,要…     

我国鸟类资源信息微机管理系统的研制

鸟类资源信息微机管理系统是将先进的微机技术应用于鸟类标本及有关资料的管理。为鸟类分类区系的研究及有关地区(省、地、县)的鸟类资源情况提供快速、准确而有效的咨询服务。因而为鸟类分类区系的研究工作以及鸟类标本资料的管理提供了先进的科学管理手段。 本系统以郑作新(1976)编著的《中国鸟类分布名录》为鸟类的分类系统进行科学的编码,建立了中国鸟类分类的名录代码库(FLDM.DBF)从而使系统包含了分布于我国各地有记录的所有鸟类资源的名录,共计有21目、81科(4亚科)、1176个种。(数据库中补入了未被录入1976年出版的《中国鸟类名录》而为昆明动物研究所收藏的新纪录10种)。     

广西鸟类新纪录--史氏蝗莺

2005年2月,在广西西南部中越边境地区的凭祥市考察时,采到一号雀形目鸟类标本,经鉴定为史氏蝗莺（Locustella pleskei）,是广西鸟类新纪录.标本保存于广西大学动物科技学院动物标本室.     

云南省鸟类种的新纪录--花田鸡

20 0 3年10月15日2 0 :30至10月16日7:0 0 ,笔者在云南省巍山彝族回族自治县庙街镇隆庆关(2 5°17′4 5″N ,10 0°2 1′14″E ,海拔2 5 80m )进行夜间鸟类环志工作时,捕获一只秧鸡科鸟类标本。标本经鉴定确认为国家Ⅱ级重点保护鸟类花田鸡Porzanaexquisita (Cheng ,1987) ,系云南省鸟类种的新纪录。标本现保存于中国科学院昆明动物研究所鸟类标本室。所采获的花田鸡标本形态描述如下:额部褐色;头顶黑色;上体羽褐色,背、两肩具有显著的黑色纵纹及众多白色点斑;尾羽黑色。初级飞羽黑色,第一枚初级飞羽的外缘白色;次级飞羽羽端具宽而显著…     

Prevalence of avian pox virus and effect on the fledging success of Laysan Albatross

ABSTRACT.   Avian pox virus ( Poxvirus avium ) is a mosquito-borne disease that occurs worldwide in a variety of bird species, but little is known about its prevalence or effect on seabirds. We monitored prevalence of pox virus and its effect on fledging success of Laysan Albatross ( Phoebastria immutabilis ) on Oahu, Hawaii, from 2003 to 2007. Pox prevalence in albatross chicks averaged 88% in years with high rainfall and 3% in years with low rainfall. Diagnosis of pox virus was clinically confirmed in two birds by Muscovy Duck ( Cairina moschata ) fibrolast cultures. Severity of infection ranged from small wart-like nodules and lesions on the bill, face, eyes, tarsus, and feet, to large tumorous growths that completely covered both eyes and caused deformation of the bill and skull. Most chicks recovered from infection, and the fledging rate in pox epizootic years (82%) did not differ from that in years with low pox prevalence (80%) or the average fledging rate on Midway Atoll (86%). Three chicks with severe infections were resighted as healthy adults on Kauai and Oahu in 2007, confirming postfledging survival of at least some birds. The high recovery rate, fledging success, and postfledging survival indicate that Laysan Albatross have strong immunity to avian pox virus.     

Incubation energetics of the Laysan Albatross

Summary The energy expenditure of incubating and foraging Laysan Albatross (Diomedea immutabilis, mean body weight 3.07 kg) was estimated by means of the doubly-labelled water technique. During incubation, the energy expenditure was similar to that of resting birds that were not incubating an egg. The energy expenditure of foraging albatross (2072 kJ/day) was 2.6 times that of resting birds. It was concluded that the energy expenditure of the tropical Laysan Albatross was not less than that of species foraging over cold, high-latitude oceans. An energy budget compiled for an incubating pair of albatross revealed that the energy expenditure of the female was greater than that of the male bird, during the incubation period.     

Paint chip poisoning of Laysan albatross at Midway Atoll

Epizootic mortality occurred in Laysan albatross (Diomedea immutabilis) fledgings at Midway Atoll in 1983. Heavy metal toxicity from ingestion of weathered paint chips was one of the causes. Sick albatrosses were unable to retract their wings, causing a "droop-wing" appearance. Five normal and 12 droop-winged fledglings were captured, killed, and examined. Paint chips found in the proventriculus of the affected fledglings contained up to 144,000 ppm lead. Blood, liver, and kidney concentrations of lead in affected birds were higher than in normal fledglings, and acid-fast intranuclear inclusion bodies were present in the kidneys. Degenerative lesions were present in the myelin of some brachial nerves. Weathered paint samples collected from 12 buildings contained up to 247,250 ppm lead and 101 ppm mercury. Lead poisoning was diagnosed in 10 of the droop-winged albatrosses and was one of the causes of morbidity. Mercury toxicosis and plastic impaction were other possible causes.     

Using super‐high resolution satellite imagery to census threatened albatrosses

This study is the first to utilize 30‐cm resolution imagery from the WorldView‐3 (WV‐3) satellite to count wildlife directly. We test the accuracy of the satellite method for directly counting individuals at a well‐studied colony of Wandering Albatross Diomedea exulans at South Georgia, and then apply it to the closely related Northern Royal Albatross Diomedea sanfordi, which is near‐endemic to the Chatham Islands and of unknown recent population status due to the remoteness and limited accessibility of the colonies. At South Georgia, satellite‐based counts were comparable to ground‐based counts of Wandering Albatross nests, with a slight over‐estimation due to the presence of non‐breeding birds. In the Chatham Islands, satellite‐based counts of Northern Royal Albatross in the 2015/2016 season were similar to ground‐based counts undertaken on the Forty‐Fours islands in 2009/2010, but much lower than ground‐based counts undertaken on The Sisters islands in 2009/2010, which is of major conservation concern for this endangered albatross species. We conclude that the ground‐breaking resolution of the newly available WV‐3 satellite will provide a step change in our ability to count albatrosses and other large birds directly from space without disturbance, at potentially lower cost and with minimal logistical effort.     

Dynamic habitat models: using telemetry data to project fisheries bycatch

Fisheries bycatch is a recognized threat to marine megafauna. Addressing bycatch of pelagic species however is challenging owing to the dynamic nature of marine environments and vagility of these organisms. In order to assess the potential for species to overlap with fisheries, we propose applying dynamic habitat models to determine relative probabilities of species occurrence for specific oceanographic conditions. We demonstrate this approach by modelling habitats for Laysan (Phoebastria immutabilis) and black-footed albatrosses (Phoebastria nigripes) using telemetry data and relating their occurrence probabilities to observations of Hawaii-based longline fisheries in 1997-2000. We found that modelled habitat preference probabilities of black-footed albatrosses were high within some areas of the fishing range of the Hawaiian fleet and such preferences were important in explaining bycatch occurrence. Conversely, modelled habitats of Laysan albatrosses overlapped little with Hawaii-based longline fisheries and did little to explain the bycatch of this species. Estimated patterns of albatross habitat overlap with the Hawaiian fleet corresponded to bycatch observations: black-footed albatrosses were more frequently caught in this fishery despite being 10 times less abundant than Laysan albatrosses. This case study demonstrates that dynamic habitat models based on telemetry data may help to project interactions with pelagic animals relative to environmental features and that such an approach can serve as a tool to guide conservation and management decisions.     

Early development and differentiation of the Laysan albatross (Phoebastria immutabilis (Rothschild, 1893): Procellariiformes)

Bird incubation is subdivided into two phases: differentiation (embryonic phase) and growth (fetal phase). Most birds have a relatively short incubation period (20–30 days) with the phase transition occurring midway through the incubation period. The Laysan albatross (Phoebastris immutabilis) is a large pelagic bird with a long incubation period. The purpose of this study was to document the differentiation phase with the aim of ascertaining the impact of a lengthened incubation on embryonic development. Eighty‐two previously collected albatross embryos were examined, measured, and staged. The albatross was found to develop more slowly than smaller birds, with a rate similar to other long‐incubating birds. Legs and wings grow at similar rates but exhibit variation in growth among their anatomical components. While the albatross embryos shared some morphological stages with chickens, they were more similar to ducks and pelicans. Special features of the albatross not shared with the Gallianserae (chickens and ducks) included an alligator‐like curved tail, narial tubes, and a cloacal bulge. Further examination of other larger pelagic birds with long incubation periods are needed to determine the uniqueness of the Laysan albatross embryonic development. Although much embryonic phase growth was documented in the postnatal period, little is known about the later, fetal phase in Laysan albatross. Future studies should involve examination of later (post day 32) fetuses. J. Morphol. 277:1231–1249, 2016. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Successful same-sex pairing in Laysan albatross

Unrelated same-sex individuals pairing together and cooperating to raise offspring over many years is a rare occurrence in the animal kingdom. Cooperative breeding, in which animals help raise offspring that are not their own, is often attributed to kin selection when individuals are related, or altruism when individuals are unrelated. Here we document long-term pairing of unrelated female Laysan albatross (Phoebastria immutabilis) and show how cooperation may have arisen as a result of a skewed sex ratio in this species. Thirty-one per cent of Laysan albatross pairs on Oahu were female-female, and the overall sex ratio was 59% females as a result of female-biased immigration. Female-female pairs fledged fewer offspring than male-female pairs, but this was a better alternative than not breeding. In most female-female pairs that raised a chick in more than 1 year, at least one offspring was genetically related to each female, indicating that both females had opportunities to reproduce. These results demonstrate how changes in the sex ratio of a population can shift the social structure and cause cooperative behaviour to arise in a monogamous species, and they also underscore the importance of genetically sexing monomorphic species.     

Eye structure and amphibious foraging in albatrosses

Anterior eye structure and retinal visual fields were determined in grey-headed and black-browed albatrosses, Diomedea melanophris and D. chrysostoma (Procellariiformes, Diomedeidae), using keratometry and an ophthalmoscopic reflex technique. Results for the two species were very similar and indicate that the eyes are of an amphibious optical design suggesting that albatross vision is well suited to the visual pursuit of active prey both on and below the ocean surface. The corneas are relatively flat (radius ca. 14.5 mm) and hence of low absolute refractive power (ca. 23 dioptres). In air the binocular fields are relatively long (vertical extent ca. 70 degrees) and narrow (maximum width in the plane of the optic axes 26–32 degrees), a topography found in a range of bird species that employ visual guidance of bill position when foraging. The cyclopean fields measure approximately 270 degrees in the horizontal plane, but there is a 60 degrees blind sector above the head owing to the positioning of the eyes below the protruding supraorbital ridges. Upon immersion the monocular fields decrease in width such that the binocular fields are abolished. Anterior eye structure, and visual field topography in both air and water, show marked similarity with those of the Humboldt penguin.     

Epidermoptid mange in Laysan albatross fledglings in Hawaii

Mange caused by the epidermoptid mite Myialges nudus (Acari: Epidermoptidae) is described in 31 dead fledgling Laysan albatrosses (Phoebastria immutabilis) from Midway Atoll (Hawaii, USA) sampled from 18 June to 10 July 1990 and from 21 June to 22 July 1991. This is the first record for this parasite from this host. Mites were collected from the skin; were located primarily in the stratum corneum; and were associated with mild to severe granulomatous inflammation, hyperkeratosis, dermal edema, ballooning degeneration of keratinocytes, neovascularization, and subdermal fibrosis. The severity of inflammation in some birds suggested that dermatitis due to M. nudus could be a significant cause of morbidity, or even mortality, in these birds.     

Quantitative analysis of the use of discards from squid trawlers by Black-browed Albatrosses Diomedea melanophris in the vicinity of the Falkland Islands

In the past decade, a major trawl fishery for the squid Loligo gahi has developed in the vicinity of Beauchêne Island, an internationally important breeding site for the Black-browed Albatross Diomedea melanophris. The breeding season diet of this albatross in the Falklands and its use of discards generated by the Loligo fishery were investigated. Albatross chicks are fed extensively on commercially exploited species of squid and fish including Loligo gahi and southern blue whiting Micromesistius australis. The quantity of waste generated by the Loligo fishery amounts to c. 5% of the reported catch and just over 50% of this waste, mainly Loligo and nototheniid fish, is scavenged by adult Black-browed Albatrosses. The total quantity scavenged during the chick rearing period amounts to 1000–2000 tonnes per year. This is equivalent to 10–15% of the total food requirement of the breeding Black-browed Albatross population on Beauchene Island during the period when the fishery is operating. Although the Loligo fishery currently provides a significant quantity of food to these albatrosses, its net effect may be detrimental to them, as it is a much greater predator of Loligo stocks than the albatrosses are estimated to have been prior to the fishery's development.