Albatross

Albatrosses belong to the bird family Diomedeidae. They are large seabirds, part of the order Procellariiformes—the tubenoses—which also includes procellariids, storm petrels, and diving petrels. These birds are found across the Southern Ocean and the North Pacific, but they are absent from the North Atlantic; fossil evidence shows that short-tailed albatrosses once lived there until the Pleistocene, and occasional stray individuals still appear. The group generally relies on cold water currents for both feeding and nesting. The genus *Phoebastria*, which is geographically separate, includes three North Pacific species and one equatorial species from the Galapagos; these birds make use of the California, Alaska, Oyashio, and Humboldt currents, nesting on major oceanic islands near those currents.

The great albatrosses rank among the largest flying birds, with wingspans reaching 2.5 to 3.5 meters (8.2–11.5 feet) and bodies exceeding one meter (3.3 feet) in length. Most classifications place albatrosses into four genera, though experts disagree on the exact number of species. These birds are exceptionally efficient fliers, employing dynamic soaring and slope soaring to travel vast distances with minimal effort. Their diet consists of squid, fish, and krill, which they obtain by scavenging, seizing prey from the surface, or diving. Albatrosses are colonial nesters, typically breeding on remote oceanic islands, often alongside other species. Pairs form over several years through ritualized dances, and the bond lasts for life. A single egg is laid per breeding attempt, and the entire season—from laying to fledging—can take over a year. The oldest known wild bird in the world is a Laysan albatross named Wisdom, first banded on Midway Island in 1956 by Chandler Robbins.

Of the 22 albatross species recognized by the IUCN, 21 are listed as being at some level of concern: two are Critically Endangered, seven are Endangered, six are Vulnerable, and six are Near Threatened. Historically, populations declined due to feather harvesting. Current threats include introduced species such as rats and feral cats, which attack eggs, chicks, and nesting adults; pollution; a serious drop in fish stocks from overfishing; and longline fishing. Longline fishing is the greatest danger, as birds are drawn to the bait, get hooked, and drown. Governments, conservation groups, and fishing industry stakeholders are working together to reduce this problem.

**Etymology** The name "albatross" comes from the Arabic *al-qādūs* or *al-ḡaṭṭās* (meaning a pelican, literally "the diver"), which entered English through the Portuguese *Alcatraz* (meaning "gannet")—also the origin of the prison's name. The Oxford English Dictionary notes that *Alcatraz* originally referred to the frigatebird; the shift to "albatross" may have been influenced by Latin *albus* ("white"), contrasting with the black frigatebird. These birds were once commonly called goonie birds or gooney birds, especially in the North Pacific. In the Southern Hemisphere, the name mollymawk—a corruption of the old Dutch *malle-mugge* for the northern fulmar—is still used in some areas. Linnaeus assigned the genus name *Diomedea*, referencing the mythical transformation of the companions of the Greek warrior Diomedes into birds. The order name Procellariiformes comes from the Latin *procella*, meaning "a violent wind" or "a storm."

**Taxonomy and evolution** The albatross family includes between 13 and 24 species (21 is the most commonly accepted number) across four genera: the great albatrosses (*Diomedea*), the mollymawks (*Thalassarche*), the North Pacific albatrosses (*Phoebastria*), and the sooty albatrosses (*Phoebetria*). The North Pacific albatrosses are considered a sister group to the great albatrosses, while the sooty albatrosses are thought to be closer to the mollymawks. Taxonomy has long been debated. The Sibley-Ahlquist system places seabirds, birds of prey, and others in a greatly enlarged order, Ciconiiformes, but ornithological organizations in North America, Europe, South Africa, Australia, and New Zealand retain the traditional order Procellariiformes. Albatrosses can be distinguished from other Procellariiformes by genetics, morphology, size, leg structure, and the arrangement of their nasal tubes. Within the family, the assignment of genera has been argued over for more than a century. Originally all placed in *Diomedea*, they were split into four genera by Reichenbach in 1852, then lumped and split repeatedly, acquiring 12 different genus names by 1965 (though never more than eight at once): *Diomedea*, *Phoebastria*, *Thalassarche*, *Phoebetria*, *Thalassageron*, *Diomedella*, *Nealbatrus*, *Rhothonia*, *Julietata*, *Galapagornis*, *Laysanornis*, and *Penthirenia*. In 1965, to simplify classification, they were lumped into two genera: *Phoebetria* (the sooty albatrosses, then considered primitive and most similar to procellarids) and *Diomedea* (the rest). This classification was based on Elliott Coues's 1866 morphological analysis, but it largely ignored later studies and even some of Coues's own suggestions. Research by Gary Nunn of the American Museum of Natural History (1996) and others, using mitochondrial DNA from all 14 then-accepted species, has since reshaped understanding.