Albatross Wisdom Hatches 40th Chick In Hawaii Nesting Colony, Even At Age 65

Wisdom is a 65-year-old albatross living in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands, and she’s still kicking. She’s also been quite busy, as she just hatched her 40th chick.

Born at the Midway Atoll National Wildlife Refuge (which is part of the Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument), the new (adorable) chick has been named Kūkini — the Hawaiian word for messenger.

NPR reports that scientists saw the new chick emerge from its shell on February 1, after Wisdom’s partner took turn to incubate the egg so as to allow her to go search for food – the mate only went for food itself after Wisdom returned.

Wildlife scientists say a Laysan albatross incubates and raises its chick within a 7-month period, and this is about the time they are known to stay on land for breeding purposes. They spend most of their time flying across the ocean year-round, logging hundreds of miles a day and thousands of miles a year. Scientists say these birds are even capable of sleeping in the air.

The birds come to their breeding grounds once a year to try to lay a single egg.

“Wisdom has raised at least eight chicks since 2006, and as many as 40 in her lifetime,” the Fish and Wildlife Service said. “Just as astonishing, she has likely flown over 3 million miles since she was first tagged on Midway Atoll in 1956.”

And Bruce Peterjohn, chief of the Patuxent Wildlife Research Center’s National Bird Banding Laboratory noted that “What is also miraculous is that biologist Chandler Robbins, who banded her as a breeding adult in 1956 on Midway Atoll, sighted her 46 years later near the same nesting location.”

Now 97 years old, old Robbins occasionally visits the scientific stations to still see the birds after working there for several decades.

Agencies/Canadajournal