Amazing Albatross Story

Certainly a different perspective on life - an albatross, minimum of 62 years old, that has logged an estimated 2-3 million miles flying at sea over her life - amazing.

From a recent USFWS news release.


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*World’s oldest known wild bird hatches another chick*

* *

A Laysan albatross known as “Wisdom” – believed to be at least 62 years old – has hatched a chick on Midway Atoll National Wildlife Refuge for the sixth consecutive year. Early Sunday morning, February 3, 2013, the chick was observed  pecking its way into the world by U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service biologist Pete Leary, who said the chick appears healthy. Wisdom was first banded in 1956, when she was incubating an egg in the same area of the refuge. She was at least five years old at the time.



“Everyone continues to be  inspired by Wisdom as a symbol of hope for her species,” said Doug Staller, the Fish and Wildlife Service Superintendent for the Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument (Monument), which includes Midway Atoll NWR.



Staff and volunteers stationed on Midway are responsible for monitoring the health of the beautiful seabirds that arrive every year  by the hundreds of thousands to nest. Upon the seabirds’ arrival, field staff  monitor them and gather information for one of the longest and oldest continuous survey data sets for tropical seabirds in the world.



Wisdom has worn out five bird bands since she was first banded by U.S.
Geological Survey scientist Chandler Robbins in 1956. Robbins estimated Wisdom to be at least 5 years old at the time, since this is the earliest age at which these birds breed. Typically, they breed at 8 or 9 years of age after a very involved courtship lasting over several years so Wisdom could be even older than 62.



“As Wisdom rewrites the record books, she provides new insights into the remarkable biology of seabirds,” said Bruce Peterjohn, chief of the North American Bird Banding Program at the USGS Patuxent Wildlife Research Center in Laurel, MD. “It is beyond words to describe the amazing accomplishments of this wonderful bird and how she demonstrates the value of bird banding to better understand the world around us. If she were human, she would be elible for Medicare in a couple years yet she is still regularly raising young and annually circumnavigating the Pacific Ocean. Simply incredible.”



Peterjohn said Wisdom has likely raised at least 30 to 35 chicks during her breeding life, though the number may well be higher because experienced parents tend to be better parents than younger breeders. Albatross lay only one egg a year, but it takes much of a year to incubate and raise the chick. After consecutive years in which they have successfully raised and fledged a chick, the parents may take the occasional next year off from parenting. Wisdom is known to have nested in 2006 and then every year since 2008.



Sue Schulmeister, Manager of the Midway Atoll NWR, said, “Wisdom is one is one of those incredible seabirds that has provided the world valuable information about the longevity of these beautiful creatures and reinforces the importance of breeding adults in the population. This information helps us measure the health of our oceans that sustain albatross.”



Almost as amazing as being a parent at 62 is the number of miles Wisdom has likely logged – about 50,000 miles a year as an adult – which means that Wisdom has flown at least two million to three million miles since she was first banded. Or, to put it another way, that’s four to six trips from the Earth to the Moon and back again, with plenty of miles to spare.

*About Albatross*

Albatross are legendary birds for many reasons – in Samuel Coleridge’s poem, “The Rime of the Ancient Mariner,” a sailor has to wear an albatross around his neck as punishment for killing the bird. According to seafaring legends, albatross are the souls of lost sailors and should not be killed.
However, as reported by James Cook, sailors regularly killed and ate albatross.

Albatross are remarkable fliers who travel thousands of miles on wind currents without ever flapping their wings. They do this by angling their 6-foot wings to adjust for wind currents and varying air speeds above the water.

Nineteen of 21 species of albatross are threatened with extinction, according to the International Union for the Conservation of Nature.
Present threats to the birds include lead poisoning of chicks on Midway from lead paint used in previous decades; longline fishing, where the birds are inadvertently hooked and drowned, though conservation groups have banded with fishermen and dramatically lowered the number of deaths from this cause; and pollution, especially from garbage floating on the ocean.

The birds ingest large amounts of marine debris – by some estimates 5 tons of plastic are unknowingly fed to albatross chicks each year by their parents. Although the plastic may not kill the chicks directly, it reduces their food intake, which leads to dehydration and most likely lessens their chance of survival. In addition, albatross are threatened by invasive species such as rats and wild cats, which prey on chicks, nesting adults and eggs. Albatross evolved on islands where land mammals were absent, so have no defenses against them.

For more information on Midway Atoll National Wildlife Refuge/Battle of Midway National Memorial go to:

http://www.fws.gov/midway/



For more information on Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument go to:
http://www.fws.gov/hawaiianislands/monument.html



*Papahānaumokuākea is cooperatively managed to ensure ecological integrity and achieve strong, long-term protection and perpetuation of Northwestern Hawaiian Island ecosystems, Native Hawaiian culture, and heritage resources for current and future generations. Three co-trustees - the Department of Commerce, Department of the Interior, and State of Hawai‘i - joined by the Office of Hawaiian Affairs, protect this special place. Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument was inscribed as the first mixed (natural and
cultural) UNESCO World Heritage Site in the United States in July 2010. For more information, please visit www.papahanaumokuakea.gov*

That is fantastically amazing. Thanks John. Buoys me spirits after yesterday.

Simply amazing!

USGS covered this interesting story as well. 

 http://www.usgs.gov/blogs/features/usgs_top_story/worlds-oldest-wild-bird-a-new-mom-again/?from=title

Interesting stuff

Great story John & thanks for posting.

Really a great story, goes to show why collecting data is so important to learn about a species!

Wow!, Thanks for posting that.

Cool Thanks John

While I was still in the USCG and we were on patrol we had an albatross riding the wind off of our bow.  At one point it crossed the bow too far back and lost air lift so it landed on the deck.  Everyone was afraid to go near it.  I just happened to go forward and saw it sitting on the deck, since no one else would go near it I slowly approached it and picked it up with wings folded and lifted it up (they don't weigh much) to the rail edge and held it there until it got its bearing and stability at which point I backed up and it took off.  The wing span was at least 7 feet or more.  It didn't try to peck at me at all.  Neat experience!!!

i did not know "birds" can reach that age....AMAZING!!

Since we're sharing amazing Albatross stories, I thought I'd share mine.   

A couple years back we rented a house in Princeville Kauai.  In the backyard were 2 mating albatrosses splitting time sitting on a couple of eggs.  A couple days after we were there, the nest was abandoned.  We thought maybe we were too intrusive and scared them off.  So we called the Albatross people that watched over the local colony.  They promptly informed us that this pair was a known lesbian pair that mates every year and lays infertile eggs.  Who would have thought?

-Allen

Since we're sharing amazing Albatross stories, I thought I'd share mine.   

A couple years back we rented a house in Princeville Kauai.  In the backyard were 2 mating albatrosses splitting time sitting on a couple of eggs.  A couple days after we were there, the nest was abandoned.  We thought maybe we were too intrusive and scared them off.  So we called the Albatross people that watched over the local colony.  They promptly informed us that this pair was a known lesbian pair that mates every year and lays infertile eggs.  Who would have thought?

-Allen

Huh? I thought only seagulls were lesbians?!?!

**Mad props to anyone who knows where that comes from.

And who would have thought that Dustin is a fan of Engelbert?

-Allen

And of course we all know he's a fan of Beavis and Butthead!

-Allen

And of course we all know he's a fan of Beavis and Butthead!

-Allen

 



Sorry for thread jack!