The ability of albatrosses to fly vast distances - soaring effortlessly over the wild Southern Ocean - has inspired poetry and folklore through the ages. Tragically, this awesome ability is also now a factor in the birds' potential extinction.

If you've travelled with us to Antarctica, then you've been privileged to witness up-close the awesome flying skills of these birds as they soar effortlessly on the thermals around the ship, mile after mile. And if you've visited the Falklands or South Georgia, you may have seen them sitting serenely atop their nests, or even performing their breathtaking courtship rituals.

Albatrosses are under threat from unscrupulous fishing operations which frequent the same nutrient-rich seas favoured by the birds. Often falling within the category of IUU (Illegal, Unregulated and Unreported) fishing, the biggest threat comes from long-line fishing. Albatrosses get hooked - and drowned - when they attack baited hooks deployed from the fishing vessels.

Getting caught on long-line fishing hooks or striking warps on trawlers are the main causes for albatross deaths: 21 of the 24 species of albatross are currently threatened with extinction. These deaths can be easily prevented and compulsory mitigation measures introduced in regulated fisheries have been very successful. But IUU fishers and ‘legal’ fishers operating on the High Seas, outside countries’ economic zones, flout the rules and largely operate with impunity.

The problem is very serious. For example, every year from Falkland Islands colonies an estimated 17,000 black-browed albatrosses - about two birds per hour - die at sea, most likely while interacting with long-line fisheries. This mortality is totally unsustainable.

As a company, we have been involved in albatross conservation efforts since 2001 and each year since, we have stepped up our efforts in fund-raising, sponsorship and partnerships to find ways to stop this unconscionable scenario.

Through holding ‘auctions’ and other fund raising activities on board our ships in Antarctica, we have raised over A$500,000, which has been channeled directly into conservation projects that we have developed in conjunction with our partners, including WWF Australia and the Seabirds Funds Advisory Group, chaired by Dr Graham Robertson, Principal Research Scientist at the Australian Antarctic Division.

These projects address the problem at both an international policy level and at a grass roots action level. They have the potential to make significant contributions to the conservation effort.

The albatross is one of the planet's most potent symbols of majesty and freedom. It's unthinkable that they are on the verge of being wiped out - particularly by a practice that, with minor modifications, can be rendered virtually harmless to the birds. The solution requires research, co-operation, and urgent action.

For further information on our projects, click here.