Satellite Tracking of Albatross Foraging Trips from Tern Island, 1998

Satellite telemetry tracked the foraging distributions of Black-footed and Laysan albatrosses during the 1998 breeding season. The data, sourced from NASA EarthData and last updated in August 1998, shows trips ranging from the Hawaiian Islands to the west coast of North America and the Gulf of Alaska. It was collected by SCIOPS to study the movement patterns of these two congeneric species nesting in the tropics and subtropics.

Use Cases

• Modeling species-specific foraging ranges based on the described trips to continental shelves.
• Comparing short and long trip behaviors during brooding and chick-rearing periods mentioned in the description.
• Analyzing spatiotemporal movement patterns to the Aleutian Islands, Gulf of Alaska, and the west coast of North America.
• Studying the ecological niche separation between the two tracked albatross species.

Strengths

• Focuses on two distinct albatross species (Black-footed and Laysan) for comparative analysis.
• Covers a defined breeding season from January to June 1998, including brooding and chick-rearing periods.
• Documents specific geographic foraging destinations, including the west coast of North America and the Gulf of Alaska.

Limitations

• Last updated 1998 08 09 23:59:59.999000; freshness should be verified.
• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.

Provenance

Source

SCIOPS

Collection Method

Satellite telemetry tracking

Time Range

1998 breeding season (January - June)

Freshness

Last updated 1998-08-09 23:59:59.999000; freshness should be verified.

Geography

Tern Island (Northwest Hawaiian Islands), foraging trips to continental shelves off North America, Aleutian Islands, Gulf of Alaska