
The Wandering Albatross has the longest wingspan of any bird in the world. Their numbers are declining because animals who were brought to their habitat raid their eggs and chicks, and because of accidents with fish hooks.


Body length: 107 to 135 cm
(Source: Doubutsu Sekai-isan* Red Data Animals Kodansha) (*World Animal Heritage)

They fly in the skies of Antarctica. When they breed, they move to the islands slightly north of Antarctica.
The Wandering Albatross loves to eat squid. They may also catch octopus and fish to eat.
Male and female Albatross share the burden of raising their offspring. They take turns hunting for food in the ocean while the partner stays at the nest to look after the eggs and hatchlings.
Hatchlings threatened by animals brought by people.
The Wandering Albatross has the longest wingspan of any bird in the world. This extraordinary wingspan lets them spend most of their lives in flight. The exception is when they go into breeding. That is when they move to the slightly warmer islands than their native habitat in the Antarctic Ocean. On the islands, they lay eggs and raise their hatchlings. However, their numbers have declined because those eggs and hatchlings are attacked by pigs and other animals that people brought to the islands.

Birds caught on fish hooks?!
Fishing is the main cause for their disappearance. The squid or fish bait on fish hooks accidentally lures the Wandering Albatross to take a bite, only to swallow the hook and drown in the ocean. Widespread damage is caused by fishing because of the heavy fishing boats that spread lines and lines of fish hooks throughout their habitat. Some fishing boats are taking measures to prevent birds from accidentally getting caught in their fish hooks, but the population of Wandering Albatrosses continues to dwindle.
If you click the words above, you can see other animals related to this one.