

From studies made so far it appears that the unemployed 
component of the population has been greatly increased by construction 
operations, and by general nest destruction caused by a large human 
population. However, even on Eastern Island, where little disturbance 
has occurred, there are many unemployed birds. Although definite 
evidence is lacking, probably a considerable number of these birds are 
young frequenting the nesting grounds for a season or two before breeding. 
In addition to marking of unemployed birds with colored dyes 
for recognition over the runways, a continuous study on a specific plot 
was undertaken. 
in a small area near the bechelor officers’ quarters, 68 un- 
employed birds were numbered on their breasts with Krylon spray enamel. 
Their occurrence within 200 yards of the marking area was recorded daily 
(Figure 6). 
The total "bird days" involved in this study was 2516. The 
total "bird days" spent ashore by marked birds was 435, or an average 
of 17.2 percent. It can be seen from Figure 6 that the number of days 
spent ashore in or near the marking erea varied considerably among in- 
dividuals during this period. The least constant were naturally the 
last to be marked. The longest period a bird was seen on shore was 12 
days. Several times numbered birds were seen taking off from the beach, 
and then were seen again in their favorite area the following day. 
Apparently the night and early morning hours were spent at sea, feeding. 
However, many unemployed birds spend two or more days ashore without 
leaving to feed. 
In addition to the dye-marked unemployed birds seen flying 
over runways, marked birds have been seen on the ground at varying 
distances from the places of marking. (See Figure 7) Time did not 
permit a systematic search of remote parts of the island for marked 
birds. However, all those observed were recorded. Such wandering 
might indicate that these individuals are young birds exploring new 
areas prior to establishing a home territory. It is apparent, however, 
that unemployed birds regularly frequent favorite and rather limited 
areas. It would be of value to know if these are near the sites where 
they were hatched. These observations indicate that unemployed Laysan 
albatrosses remain associated with a definite area fairly constantly 
considering that periods of absence while feeding at sea would be 
expected. 
Considerable more study will be necessary in order to answer 
the following questions about unemployed birds which are important to 
the airplane hazard problem: (1) what is the proportion of unemployed 
to nesting birds under normal conditions? (2) In what proportion are 
the various age classes represented? (3) How many seasons do the young 
birds visit the islands before nesting? (4) For how long a period do 
they return intermittently to land during the breeding season? 
13 
