Albatrosses counted from space

[nitpicker]

http://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-39797373

Albatrosses counted from space

By Jonathan Amos
BBC Science Correspondent

4 hours ago

From the section Science & Environment

Scientists have started counting individual birds from space. They are using the highest-resolution satellite images available to gauge the numbers of Northern Royal albatrosses. This endangered animal nests almost exclusively on some rocky sea-stacks close to New Zealand’s Chatham Islands. The audit, led by experts at the British Antarctic Survey, represents the first time any species on Earth has had its entire global population assessed from orbit. The scientists report the satellite technique in Ibis, a journal of the British Ornithologists' Union.

It is likely to have a major impact on efforts to conserve the Northern Royals (Diomedea sanfordi). Ordinarily, these birds are very difficult to appraise because their nesting sites are so inaccessible. Not only are the sea-stacks far from NZ (680km), but their vertical cliffs mean that any visiting scientist might also have to be adept at rock climbing.
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This makes the DigitalGlobe WorldView-3 satellite something of a breakthrough. It can acquire pictures of Earth that capture features as small as 30cm across. The US government has only recently permitted such keen resolution to be distributed outside of the military and intelligence sectors. WorldView-3 can see the nesting birds as they sit on eggs to incubate them or as they guard newly hatched chicks. With a body length of over a metre, the adult albatrosses only show up as two or three pixels, but their white plumage makes them stand out against the surrounding vegetation. The BAS team literally counts the dots.
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