She's at least 60 years old, flies some 50,000 miles a year, has had almost three dozen kids - and now she's got another one.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service reports that Wisdom, a Laysan albatross whom they describe as the Northern Hemisphere's oldest wild bird, is rearing another chick on Midway Atoll in the Northern Pacific.
“To know that she can still successfully raise young at age 60-plus, that is beyond words," Bruce Peterjohn, the chief of the North American Bird Banding Program, said in a press release.
Biologist John Klavitter, deputy manager of the Midway Atoll National Wildlife Refuge, spotted and photographed Wisdom on the atoll in February, according to a report from the U.S. Geological Survey.
The bird was first identified and banded by a USGS researcher in 1956 when she was incubating an egg, according to the USGS. As the Laysan albatross can't breed before age 5 - and spends much of its life before that at sea - scientists estimate Wisdom is at least 60 years old. She may be even older, though, as most Laysan albatrosses don't breed until age 8 or 9 after an extended courtship, according to the USGS.
The Laysan albatross mates for life. No word on whether a 60-year-old Mr. Wisdom is somewhere on Midway or whether Wisdom is charting new skies in that area too.
Ahh, longevity. Nothing a little BP oil can't cure.
Thats one tough old bird nature has been around longer then are expiration date she just doing what comes naturaly.
I'm sure a lot of people have done this calculation but 50K miles a year times 60 years is 3 million miles.
Very cool.
Did Charlie Sheen have anything to do with this? Was it fowl play?????????
She looks great for her age!
A sweet picture. Keep soaring, Wisdom.
Wisdom is an incredible bird. Great story and wow photo. Awful blog.
Who cares how old ms. , albatross is 50 or 60 or 70 its still a cute story and may she continue to live as long as possible and enjoy her bird life.
I wonder how much tax money was spent to find this out, I would bet a family of four could live quite comfortable for several years on the amount spent.
time to order kfc lol
kfa you mean..yumm
Relax thunderlizard and enjoy the story. Yeah Wisdom, you go girl!
Wow, an innocuous post about the longevity of a seabird gets all the religious psychos coming out of the woodwork. Shocking...
They mate for life, but, play around too. In any event she seems to be holding up better than I am.
this is bird is the american dream!
At 60, we're going to have to call Wisdom a cougar.