Albatrosses Being Pushed To The Brink Of Extinction

Research by the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) and BirdLife International has come up with the alarming finding that three species of Albatrosses on islands in the South Atlantic are being pushed to the brink of extinction. The species are the wandering, or great albatross, the black-browed albatross and the grey-headed albatross. The islands are critically important - for the wandering albatross. The main cause is mortality due to longline fishing on waters off South Africa and South America where the birds travel to feed. Up to 100,000 albatrosses a year drown on longline fishing hooks. RSPB and Birdlife International has called for urgent international intervention.