Wandering albatrosses

About Wandering albatrosses

• It is the world’s largest flying bird, with a wingspan reaching an incredible 3.5 metres.
• These birds are oceanic nomads: they spend most of their 60 years of life at sea and only come to land to breed.
• These are found almost exclusively in the Southern Hemisphere.
• Their playground is the vast Southern Ocean — the region between the latitude of 60 degrees south and the continent of Antarctica.
• Marion Island and Prince Edward Island together support about half of the entire world’s wandering albatross breeding population.
• Habitat: They breed on several subantarctic islands, which are characterized by peat soils, tussock grass, sedges, mosses, and shrubs.
• They are monogamous and pairs mate for life.
• Conservation status
  • IUCN: Vulnerable
• Threats: The most likely cause is longline fishing, as they become hooked and will drown, as well as the ingestion of plastics, which kills both chicks and adults.

Q1) What is the sub-Antarctic zone?

It is a region in the Southern Hemisphere, located immediately north of the Antarctic region. This translates roughly to a latitude of between 46° and 60° south of the Equator.

Source: Albatrosses are threatened with extinction — and climate change could put their nesting sites at ris