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A Laysan albatross named Wisdom has hatched what could be her 40th chick, according to the US Fish and Wildlife Service, an impressive feat at her ripe age of at least 65. Baby Kūkini, which is Hawaiian for “messenger,” was spotted cracking out of its shell on February 1 while under the care of its father, known simply as “Gooo,” a name that reflects the number 6,000 on the identification band around his leg. Gooo served on incubation duty for more than two weeks while waiting for Wisdom to return from gathering squid, small fish, and fish eggs to regurgitate to Kūkini.
“As soon as Kūkini was secure under Wisdom, Wisdom’s mate quickly marched the length of a football field towards a path through the dunes and took flight. We expect him to be back within a week or less because newly hatched albatross chicks require a consistent supply of fresh seafood,” wrote staff from the United State’s largest conservation area, Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument in Honolulu, on Facebook on February 8. The area includes the Midway Atoll Refuge which houses the world’s largest albatross nesting colony, including Wisdom and her family.
Wisdom is the world’s oldest known banded wild bird, and one of a million albatrosses nesting and raising their families at Midway. Albatrosses live from 40 to 60 years and can breed annually with their monogamous, lifelong partners, which are only replaced after death or disappearance.
The seabirds meet their partners at the same location each year to build a new nest together. For the Laysan albatrosses, the breeding happens primarily on the Hawaiian Islands between November and July. For the rest of the year, the birds stay in the northwestern and northeastern range of the Pacific Ocean, where they feed on sea creatures plucked from the surface of the water. The aeronautical masters can soar for hours or even days without flapping their wings, and touch land only during breeding season, though they do rest on the water to feed and sleep. They can fly in their sleep to avoid predators such as whales and sharks.
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