Diving behaviour of the grey-headed albatross

Foraging grey-headed albatrosses spent 86% of the night but only 20% of the day sitting on the seal most diving activity occurred during daylight. During;he brood-guard period of nesting, peaks of diving activity occurred at midday and dusk. During the subsequent chick-rearing period, however, diving was mainly al dawn and dusk. Of 485 dives measured, the depth averaged 0.74 m, with maximum depth at 6.5 m. On average grey-headed albatrosses dived 24 times during a five day foraging trip. Dive depths increased towards midday, probably as a function of the birds' visual acuity rather than due to vertical migration of their prey. We estimate that grey-headed albatross es may obtain 30-45% of their daily food requirements by diving.