Black-footed Albatros
Latin name: Phoebastria Nigripes,Conservsation status: near threatened (population is increasing)
The Black-Footed Albatross lives up to 60 years and may travel thousands of miles in a lifetime, using a specialized gliding technique that saves muscle and energy. It is able to smell food across vast expanses of ocean. Mates court for two years and pair for life.
Almost all Black Footed Albatrosses live in the Hawaiian Islands. Like all species of albatrosses that breed on low lying beaches and slopes, they are highly susceptible to sudden flooding from sea level rise and storm surges. Thousands each year are caught by longline fishing and they are also threatened by pollution and ingesting plastics that float in the ocean.
Other animals effected by climate change
Ringed SealAll populations of Ringed Seals are expected to be adversely affected by climate change because of dependence on sea ice and snow dens for breeding, protecting pups, moulting and resting. Early warming causes pups to separate prematurely from their mothers. As sea ice declines, other threats are fisheries by-catch, increased shipping, tourism and development. Seals are vulnerable to disease from heavy concentrations of pollutants that have accumulated in the Arctic food web.
Whooping CraneBefore 1800 there were an estimated 10–20,000 Whooping Cranes in North America. By 1941, because of hunting and habitat destruction, there were fewer than 20. There are now approximately 350–380 in the wild. The wild Whooping Crane population has only one winter habitat—a wildlife refuge on the Gulf Coast in Texas; and one spring breeding habitat—a prairie wetlands in Alberta. Severe storms, sea level rise, drought, industrial development and oil spills threaten these habitats. Another significant threat to young Whooping Cranes is colliding with power lines in their migration corridor.
Tufted PuffinTufted Puffins are threatened by sea level rise and storm surges which destroy habitats and breeding areas. In some areas of North America warming seas are causing the fish that the Puffins feed on to migrate farther north, making it difficult for them to find adequate food. Other threats are entrapment in fishing nets, oil spills, pollution, ingestion of plastic, human disturbance of breeding colonies and introduced predators such as rats and foxes.
Ivory GullIvory Gulls are almost entirely dependent on sea ice and glaciers for nesting and food foraging. They feed on fish and shellfish that thrive near the edge of the ice, and on the remains of seals left by Polar Bears. Seal blubber is a source of heavy contaminants—Ivory Gull eggs show a higher concentration of mercury and pesticides than any Arctic sea bird. Other threats are illegal hunting and disturbance from diamond mining in the Canadian Arctic.