BIRD WATCH: ‘Wisdom’ lives on in albatross colony

A NEWSPAPER CLIPPING from Huntsville, Ala., contained some unexpected surprises.

A reader moved to that area last year and has been on the lookout for articles involving birds.

Daniel Acedo hit the jackpot, as far as I am concerned. The article’s writer is Steven Austad, who is the chair of the biology department at the University of Alabama. His subject was “Wisdom.”

Wisdom has been in the headlines more than once.

Each time, readers can only shake their heads in amazement bordering on disbelief.

Wisdom is a Laysan albatross. There are tens of thousands of albatross living on a small atoll in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. During World War II, this land known as Midway Island was a strategic outpost for the Americans and their allies in the battle with Japan.

After the war, remnants of its human occupation remained for decades. Today, it is known as Midway Atoll National Wildlife Refuge. It is the world’s largest albatross colony.

That’s where Wisdom comes into the story.

For most of the year, albatross spend their lives at sea.

They fish the waters of the Pacific on wings that span 6½ feet.

Once they leave the nest, young albatross fly thousands of miles before ever touching land again.

It takes years for these birds to not only mature but to find a mate.

Eventually, they return to the place where they were born to nest and raise one chick.

Return to the nest

Wisdom has been doing this since at least 1956. This past December, along with other Midway albatross, she once again returned with her mate to nest.

She is reputed to be the world’s oldest wild bird, with her estimated age being 66 years.

How her age was determined was a surprise for me.

Back in the ’80s, my husband I were visiting birding friends who lived in Maryland.

At one of the “good places,” they pointed out some birders dashing across the field we were about to explore.

Nathan waved to them and remarked, “That’s Chan Robbins.”

Of course we were excited to see one of the nation’s best birders in action.

At that time, Chandler Robbins was the author of the field guide “Birds of North America.”

That book and the guide by Roger Tory Peterson probably had the world’s share of birders using field guides for North America’s birds.

In December 1956, Robbins was ringing (a form of banding) Midway’s albatross.

He caught a female while she was incubating her egg and placed a ring around one leg.

At the time, Robbins was 38 years old. He estimated that Wisdom was at least 6 years old.

This wasn’t the only time the two would meet.

Forty-six years later, at the age of 84, Robbins was still involved with this albatross colony.

It numbered over a half-million birds.

In 2002, he came across a bird he had ringed in 1956.

Considering the dangers and stress that a sea bird would encounter over that span of time, it is amazing Wisdom not only survived but is still raising offspring.

Lived through earthquake

When the 2011 Japan earthquake created a tsunami that rolled over the atoll, it killed more than 100,000 albatross. Wisdom wasn’t one of them. She was 61 at the time.

Chandler Robbins is also pretty amazing. He retired from the Patuxent Wildlife Research Center in Maryland 10 years ago but keeps up with the work on Midway.

At the age of 98, he still goes into the office every week. Wisdom has outlived several “life” partners in her 60 years of producing offspring.

It has been estimated that she has flown some 3 million miles, which is the equivalent of three round trips to the moon.

The story has a happy ending, according to Austad’s report. Wisdom’s current mate, a much younger fellow, has been appropriately named in Hawaiian.

“Akeakamai” means “lover of wisdom.”

It will be awhile before I receive a newspaper clipping as interesting as this one was.

________

Joan Carson’s column appears every Sunday. Contact her at P.O. Box 532, Poulsbo, WA 98370, with a self-addressed, stamped envelope for a reply. Email: joanpcarson@comcast.net.

More in Life

ISSUES OF FAITH: Finding faith that there is ‘somebody out there’

I’VE ALWAYS HAD a passion for music, especially ’80s music. Back in… Continue reading

The Rev. Larry Schellink will present the program at 10:30 a.m. Sunday. Schellink is the minister of record at Unity in the Olympics, 2917 E. Myrtle Ave.
Weekend program scheduled for Unity in the Olympics

The Rev. Larry Schellink will lead a discussion regarding… Continue reading

The Rev. Pam Douglas-Smith.
Speaker set at Unity in Port Townsend for weekend service

The Rev. Pam Douglas-Smith will present “The Twelve Conditions… Continue reading

The Rev. Bruce Bode
Bode scheduled for OUUF weekend program

The Rev. Bruce Bode will present “Basic Morality and… Continue reading

Matthew Nash / Olympic Peninsula News Group
Jennifer Scott of the Hudson Valley region in New York with her niece Calliope Scott of Denver walk the lavender fields of Jardin du Soleil. Scott said she loves lavender. Last week was their first time visiting a lavender farm.
Lavender weekend to bring concerts, food and music

Festivities set across Peninsula from Friday through Sunday

John Goar speaks to a group of visitors before leading them on a moonlit hike up Hurricane Hill for a tour of the constellations. Goar is a volunteer who leads the full moon hikes and dark sky telescope tours that are part of the astronomy program at Hurricane Ridge. (Paula Hunt/Peninsula Daily News)
Hurricane Ridge astronomy program reveals treasures

Volunteer-run tour guides visitors at Hurricane Ridge

Karen Griffiths
Rainshadow Equine Sanctuary Team’s Debi Pavlich-Boaz leads Paliday calmly over a blue tarp as part of his daily training routine. She worked with the Yakima Sheriff’s Department to capture the mini stallion when he was running alongside a freeway, deftly evading capture. Without her help, and an offer to take him home, the sheriff’s department planned on taking the then-untrained pony to a local holding pen to await transport to a slaughter house in Canada. Instead, Paliday is now happily living the rest of days out as a gelding at the sanctuary.
HORSEPLAY: Peninsula animal rescue, shelters need our help

DID YOU KNOW that most of our local horse, dog and cat… Continue reading

A GROWING CONCERN: Get your garden schooled on Nutrients 101

AS WE MOVE through July and our yard and gardens are flourishing,… Continue reading

ISSUES OF FAITH: Truth and honesty important in leadership

THROUGHOUT THE TORAH, we are taught the importance of honesty and justice.… Continue reading

Doug Benecke will be joined by Sallie Harrison for special music at 10:30 a.m. Sunday.
Program set for weekend service

Doug Benecke will present “Play Ball!” at 10:30 a.m.… Continue reading

The Rev Craig Vocelka will present “Listening for the Whisper” at 10:00 am this Sunday at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, 1020 Jefferson Street.
St. Paul’s Episcopal Church plans service

The Rev. Craig Vocelka will present “A Thankful, Generous… Continue reading

The Rev. Pam Douglas-Smith.
Speaker set at Unity in Port Townsend for weekend service

The Rev. Pam Douglas-Smith will present “Divine Feeding of… Continue reading