Laysan Albatross with chick in Kauai

Laysan albatross with chick on Kauai, 2016.

Laysan albatross is one of many wide-ranging species studied by USGS scientists with GPS trackers. This photo was taken while tagging Laysan albatross for a study about how habitat characteristics at sea influence the foraging behaviors among chick-provisioning Laysan albatross. It is the first high-resolution study from the chick-provisioning stage that leads up to fledging, when energy demands are greatest. They conducted tracking during two breeding seasons that coincided with two climatic events: an anomalous marine heatwave and the cooling period after an extreme El Niño event—events that might be representative of future ocean conditions as the climate changes.