To Moms and bird lovers everywhere: Wisdom and her chick

[stevedeshazer]

MIDWAY ATOLL — The oldest known U.S. wild bird – a coyly conservative 60 -- is a new mother.

The bird, a Laysan albatross named Wisdom, was spotted a few weeks ago with a chick by John Klavitter, a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service biologist and the deputy manager of the Midway Atoll National Wildlife Refuge.

The bird has sported and worn out 5 bird bands since she was first banded by U.S. Geological Survey scientist Chandler Robbins in 1956 as she incubated an egg. Chandler rediscovered Wisdom in 2001. In 1956, he estimated Wisdom to be at least 5 years old then since this is the earliest age at which these birds breed, though they more typically breed at 8 or 9 after an involved courtship lasting several years. This means, of course, that Wisdom is likely to be in her early sixties.

There must be something to all that fish oil she consumes because Wisdom does not look her age.

“She looks great,” said Bruce Peterjohn, the chief of the North American Bird Banding Program at the USGS Patuxent Wildlife Research Center in Laurel, Md. “And she is now the oldest wild bird documented in the 90-year history of our USGS-FWS and Canadian bird banding program,” he added. “To know that she can still successfully raise young at age 60-plus, that is beyond words. While the process of banding a bird has not changed greatly during the past century, the information provided by birds marked with a simple numbered metal band has transformed our knowledge of birds.”

more: http://www.usgs.gov/newsroom/article.asp?ID=2722

This is cooler than the other of the pillow.

[blue neen]

1. That is definitely the most cheerful thing I've seen today!

:) Thank you.!

[spiderpig]

3. Me too! Yay Wisdom!

I had to call Mr. pig over here just to look at her beautiful picture. :loveya:

[virgogal]

2. And they used to be called gooney birds. Such a beautiful story.

[Kadie]

4. She is Beautiful!

Thank you so much for posting this. :)

:hi:

[emilyg]

5. Wisdom rocks.

[stevedeshazer]

6. Looking good in her sixties

:)

[canetoad]

7. Thank you

Lovely post. :)

[Raksha]

8. This is just beautiful.

And for personal reasons, I'm very happy she is named Wisdom.