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With funding from National Fish and Wildlife Foundation and research vessel support from Cordell Bank National Marine Sanctuary, the endeavor to understand migratory movements of Black-footed Albatross has begun.

In 2004, we refined techniques and deployed nine satellite tags on albatrosses in Cordell Bank National Marine Sanctuary . We tracked their movements during 3-months spanning the post-breeding migration.

Courtesy of Seaturtle.org, complete voyage maps of each bird can be viewed, click on maps below:

Please click maps to view explorations !

Francisco's map (left) links you to the five birds transmitting signals daily. Capella's map (right) links to the four birds carrying transmitters that operate for 24 hours on, 24 hours off.

The maps above display movements of two Black-footed Albatross tracked using a Sirtrack KiwiSat 202 satellite transmitters.

Francisco (left photo above) is an adult and was tagged near Bodega Canyon (Central California) on July 26, 2004. After spending 5 days soaring and presumably feeding along shelf break habitats in Cordell Bank and Gulf of the Farallones National Marine Sanctuaries, Francisco headed rapidly offshore, out of the US regulated EEZ fishing zone into regions where multiple nations operate longline fishing vessels .

Capella (right photo above) was born on Tern Island, Hawai'i, and is 4 years young - not old enough to successfully breed yet. He/she was tagged on August 10, 2004 at the west edge of Cordell Bank. We know the age and history of this bird because it was banded with a metal ring on its leg when it was a chick.

The gender of these birds is being determined using genetic techniques. Stay tuned !!!

Funding is needed to support this conservation work
"Sponsor an Albatross Tag"

Thank you to the Albatross and the following people helping support this work:

Dan Howard, Jenny Stock, Michael Carver, and Rowena Forest from Cordell Bank NMS

Peter Pyle and Rob Suryan, Adivsors

Michael Coyne from Seaturtle.org

Glen Schuster from Signals of Spring

Bolinas Market Butchers

Captains Michael Carver and Josh Churchman
Research Crew: Denise Hardesty, Franz Kuemmeth, Cheryl Baduini, Carol Keiper, David Hyrenbach, Michelle Hester , Diana Humple, Amon Armstrong, Sue Abbott, Tanner Nevill, Viola Toniolo

Left: Denise, Michelle and Josh on Josh's boat Palo in Bodega Bay

Right: David and Michelle attracting Albatross to the Sanctuary boat Phocena