World’s oldest wild bird lays eggs at 74 and awaits offspring
The world's oldest bird lays eggs (illustrative photo: GettyImages)
Some species of albatrosses can live up to 70 years. However, this makes them less fertile, which affects population changes. Recently, ornithologists witnessed a unique event: a 74-year-old female albatross, the oldest bird in the world, is expecting offspring, reports IFL Science.
The oldest bird in the world
The oldest known wild bird, a female albatross named Wisdom, laid an egg at the age of 74 after finding a new mate earlier this year.
Wisdom was first identified and tagged by biologists when she laid an egg on Midway Atoll in 1956. Since albatrosses do not lay eggs until they are five years old, the US Fish and Wildlife Service estimates her age at at least 74 years.
The Fish and Wildlife Service also believes that Wisdom has laid between 50 and 60 eggs throughout her life, with 30 of them hatching into healthy chicks. Most of them were fathered by her long-time partner, Akeakamai, with whom she lived in a pair for 60 years.
However, according to biologist Beth Flint of the US Fish and Wildlife Service, Wisdom may have had other partners. While albatrosses typically choose a lifelong mate, they may find new ones if needed, such as when outliving their original partners.
Albatrosses return to the atoll in the northern Pacific each November to find mates after their remarkable courtship dances.
Every year, Wisdom's return provided scientists with insights into how long seabirds can live and raise chicks. Her return not only inspired bird enthusiasts worldwide but also helped improve understanding of how to protect these graceful seabirds and the habitats they need to survive in the future.
In 2021 and subsequent years, Wisdom's mate, Akeakamai, did not return to the nesting site. He is believed to have died.
Although albatrosses rarely live to such an advanced age as Wisdom, the bird gave hope that she might mate again earlier this year. In March, she was seen courting other birds.
Following these observations, the US Fish and Wildlife Service confirmed that Wisdom had laid an egg. Biologists consider the female albatross to be unique — there is no known bird of a similar age. The second oldest bird among albatrosses is 45 years old, making this a very rare occurrence.
When the offspring will be born
Most eggs are laid on the atoll in early December. The incubation period for albatross eggs is 64-65 days and most chicks hatch in January or February of the following year.
The wait can be tense, but experts expect the chick to hatch or at least have a good chance of doing so. According to biologists, about 70 to 80 percent of the eggs laid on the atoll hatch each year. Of those, roughly 50 percent survive and leave Midway.
By the way, we recently reported that scientists discovered the fossil of the largest predatory bird in the world.
