Warning: this article contains graphic images. The team reports the first evidence of mouse attacks on adult albatrosses breeding on Gough Island, where there has been a recent increase in attacks on seabird chicks. The egg hatched, and the same bird was later seen brooding and feeding the chick.

House mice not native to the island are threatening the Tristan albatross with extinction, the RSPB said. Image copyright Derren Fox It's thought seal-hunting ships of the old days brought a handful of common house mice to the island. The worldwide breeding population (approximately 1,500 pairs per year) of this endangered species is located on Gough Island in the South Atlantic archipelago of Tristan da Cunha. The mice are also threatening the native population of bunting, one of the world's largest finches, the RSPB said. The Tristan albatross is 110 cm (43 in) [clarification needed] and has a wingspan of up to 3.05 m (10.0 ft). 2015).

A Year on Gough Island by Day KS. This monster mouse now eats seabirds alive. "Without removal of the mice, both the albatross and the bunting that live there are doomed to extinction," Grahame Madge, a conservation spokesman for the RSPB, told CNN. So is the Tristan Albatross. Ornithologists first discovered chicks of the endangered Tristan albatross with gaping wounds in 2001. Albatross Information. On Gough Island, introduced mice are threatening their existence. 1:47 . The steep, volcanic island mountain sits about 3,000 kilometres from South Africa and 3,000km from South America and receives around 3 metres of rainfall every single year, making it luscious and verdant.

Tristan albatross chicks weigh up to 10kg (around 300 times the size of mice), but the open wounds inflicted by the gnawing of their flesh frequently lead to their deaths.
Mice that were introduced to Gough Island in the 19th century are now threatening to wipe out the Tristan albatross. Today the main threat to the species is believed to be long-line fishing and these mice. 1:55. Description. The Tristan Albatross bears an incredibly similar looks to the Wandering Albatross, but it is smaller and has a darker colour on its back.

It is, however, practically indistinguishable from the Wandering Albatross at sea; the Tristan Albatross is smaller and has a slightly darker back.

The main threat are mice on the island, brought by people, that eat the chicks of the Tristan Albatross and were responsible for a 50 percent decline in just three years. Even though the chicks are huge compared to the mice, they do not know how to defend themselves appropriately. Invasive house mice Mus musculus are significant predators of seabird chicks on islands where they are the only introduced mammal, but there are very few records of attacks on adult birds. The mice are also threatening the native population of bunting, one of the world's largest finches, the RSPB said. Even though the chicks are huge compared to the mice, they do not know how to defend themselves appropriately. 4:37. The Tristan Albatross is endemic to the Tristan da Cunha Group and most are found on Gough Island, indeed the majority of the world's population nest on Gough, which has around 1,500 pairs. Giant Tristan albatross faces being wiped out by a tiny predator – the house mouse Dr Jaimie Cleeland has spent a year on Gough Island studying its threatened seabirds.

"Without removal of the mice, both the albatross and the bunting that live there are doomed to extinction," Grahame Madge, a conservation spokesman for the RSPB, told CNN. House mice not native to the island are threatening the Tristan albatross with extinction, the RSPB said. Both these species of albotross are presently attacked and killed by mice. Below right: Pair of Tristan Albatross taking part in their courting display. Gough Island, inland tour by Chris Taylor. One of the great albatrosses of the genus Diomedea, it was only widely recognised as a full species in 1998.. The Tristan albatross is 110 cm (43 in) [clarification needed] and has a wingspan of up to 3.05 m (10.0 ft).

Fewer than 5000 Tristan albatross individuals are left in the world. The island is a vitally important breeding area for seabirds, including the critically endangered Tristan albatross, and the restoration program seeks to remove invasive mice from the island. A Gough website has been launched to help build awareness of the project and support fundraising efforts: www.goughisland.com.

The plumage of the species never retains the full white and will have dark greys and browns over its back.

In March 2018, an incubating Tristan Albatross Diomedea dabbenena was found on Gough Island with a typical mouse wound on its rump. Mice have crossed the line.
Gough Island, Albatross-eating Mice by Island Conservation.