Banding recoveries and the dispersal of seabirds breeding in French Austral and Antarctic Territories

Abstract

The paper summarises banding activities on French Austral and Antarctic Territories and recoveries between 195 1 and 1982. Out of 61,807 birds banded, 192 were recovered elsewhere. Maps give the location of all these recoveries. Varia- tions in the recovery rates are discussed. The fidelity rate to the hatching grounds is close to 100% for breeding birds. Spatial segregation in winter is established between different populations or species nesting on antarctic or sub-antarctic localities. From recoveries and observations at sea, four methods of oceanic resource utilization during the non- breeding season are defined for 22 species: sedentariness, migration and the concentration over rich zones of food availability, dispersion throughout the Southern Ocean and a combination of the second and third methods. The importance of food availability the ecology of albatrosses during the non-breeding season is discussed.