BREEDING SITES. THREATS By 1997, the military had closed its bases on Kure, Midway, and French Frigate Shoals and management of the islands had been transferred to state and federal wildlife agencies. Many of the threats to the NWHI colonies have been addressed through management actions[45]. All introduced mammals, except house mice (Mus musculus) on Midway, were eradicated from the NWHI. Polynesian rats (Rattus exulans) were eradicated from Kure in 1993, as were black rats (R. rattus) from Midway in 1997. Non-native plants such as golden crown-xxxxx (Verbesina encelioides) and ironwood (Casuarina equisetifolia) have degraded nesting habitat for albatrosses at Kure, Midway, and Pearl and Hermes Reef. Verbesina forms dense stands that limit available nesting habitat. The USFWS is actively working to control or eradicate this invasive species but this is a long-term and costly endeavor [12, 45]. Mosquitoes were introduced, and are now established, at Midway Atoll and the main Hawaiian Islands, where they serve as vectors for avian pox [45, 56]. P. immutabilis chicks are afflicted with the disease however, it does not appear to affect reproductive success in this species [56]. Lead poisoning (from lead paint on old buildings) may affect up to 5% of P. immutabilis chicks on Midway Atoll [12, 57] and the USFWS continues efforts to reduce these impacts. Finally, potential sea level rise is a threat to the low-lying islands and atolls of the NWHI and central Pacific [12]. Outside of the NWHI, an eradication program for feral cats (Felis catus) at Wake Atoll appears to have been successful, but black rats and Asian rats (X. xxxxxxxx) remain a threat at this site [37]. Polynesian rats are present on Lehua and black rats on Kaula. Goats (Xxxxx hircus) significantly altered and degraded habitat on Isla Xxxxxxxxx before a successful eradication program was initiated in 2004 [58]. Feral cats were likely responsible for the extinction of the Xxxxxxxxx xxxxx-petrel (Oceanodroma macrodactyla) [59] and they remain a major threat to nesting albatrosses and limit expansion of the colony. Eradication programs have been considered or are planned for mammalian predators at all of the sites discussed above. Predator eradication is not a viable option in the Main Hawaiian Islands, where a suite of predators, including feral cats and dogs (Canis lupus familiaris), and rats threaten nesting albatrosses [12, 46]. Fences and predator control programs are the primary means for controlling introduced...
BREEDING SITES. THREATS Threats to P. albatrus on Torishima remain high, despite habitat management efforts that have been undertaken there (Table 6). Despite intensive erosion control efforts undertaken by the Japanese government, erosion and flooding remain a threat. High winds can also blow chicks off their nests and down the steep slope, where parents cannot relocate them. Modelling suggests that a worst-case scenario volcanic eruption could remove about 40% of the world population in a single event [81, 82]. Such an eruption could also render breeding habitat unsuitable and would cause a lingering widow-effect as birds formed new pair bonds over subsequent years. Threats to the species on Minami Kojima are moderate to high, mostly because of vast natural gas reserves located beneath the ocean floor in the area. However, these threats are not immediate. Development of these reserves is not currently underway, likely due to the disputed ownership of the territorial waters surrounding the Senkaku Islands [27].
BREEDING SITES
