An albatross aloft can be a spectacular sight. These feathered giants have the longest wingspan of any bird—up to 11 feet (3.4 meters)!
Fast Facts about Albatross
1. Albatross has big head with strong, hooked beak. Since albatross mainly eats slippery prey, beak has sharp blades on the side to prevent loss of the catch.
2. As a result of its wingspan, it is capable of remaining in the air without flapping its wings for several hours at a time.
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3. The wandering albatross is the biggest of some two dozen different species.
4. Albatross is a carnivore (meat eater). Its diet consists of different type of fish, krill, crabs and squids.
5. The wandering albatross sometimes spends several months in the air, without ever touching land. They spend most of their life on the wing, returning to land only to court a mate and to breed.
6. Albatross searches for the prey from the sky. When potential target is detected, albatross rushes toward the water and dives to grab it. Albatross can also catch the prey located on the surface of the water.
7. Albatross does not have a lot of natural enemies. Besides humans, main predator is tiger shark which hunts young birds that are learning to fly.
8. Breeding couple has only one egg. Both parents take care of their offspring. They produce oily substance to feed the chick until it becomes capable for eating fish and other sea creatures.
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9. Albatrosses are known to be able to cover thousands of miles in a short space of time with the Grey-Headed Albatross being able to fly so far, with such little effort that they can complete a full circle around the Earth in just over a month.
10. Albatross has very long lifespan. It can survive up to 50 years in the wild.
