Large aggregations of pelagic squid near the ocean surface at the Antarctic Polar Front, and their capture by grey-headed albatrosses

• Published in: ICES Journal of Marine Science
• Main Authors: Rodhouse, Paul G., Boyle, Peter R.
• Format: Text
• Language: English
• Published: Oxford University Press 2010
• Subjects: Short Communication; Antarctic; The Antarctic; Antarc*
• Online Access: http://icesjms.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/short/67/7/1432; https://doi.org/10.1093/icesjms/fsq069

<qd> Rodhouse, P. G., and Boyle, P. R. 2010. Large aggregations of pelagic squid near the ocean surface at the Antarctic Polar Front, and their capture by grey-headed albatrosses. – ICES Journal of Marine Science, 67: 1432–1435. </qd>Satellite-tracked squid predators and fish-finding acoustics were used to locate squid concentrations at the Antarctic Polar Front, then to sample them with a midwater trawl. Near-surface hauls were dominated by the squid Martialia hyadesi similar in size to those fed to grey-headed albatross chicks. The characteristics of the squid and their proximity to the surface suggest that the birds locate squid concentrations by olfaction and catch them by plunging.