The oldest known wild bird, an albatross named Wisdom, laid an egg at the remarkable age of 74 last year, after pairing with a new mate.
Wisdom was first identified and banded by biologists after she laid an egg at Midway Atoll in 1956. As albatrosses do not lay eggs before the age of five, the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service now estimates her age to be at least 74 years old.
Every year in November, this population of albatrosses returns to Midway Atoll in the North Pacific Ocean in order to find a mate, following some impressive courtship dancing, of course.
The U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service believes that Wisdom may have laid 50-60 eggs in her lifetime, with as many as 30 becoming fully fledged chicks. Most of these would be with her longstanding mate, Akeakamai, who she partnered up with for an impressive 60 years.
“Each year that Wisdom returns, we learn more about how long seabirds can live and raise chicks,” U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service biologist Dr Beth Flint explained in a statement in 2021. “Her return not only inspires bird lovers everywhere, but helps us better understand how we can protect these graceful seabirds and the habitat they need to survive into the future.”
Last year, Wisdom returned to the atoll a little later than usual and was spotted interacting with a new mate. Not long after, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service confirmed that she had laid an egg at the remarkable age of 74.
“She’s unique,” biologist Jon Plissner told BBC Radio 4’s Today program. “We don’t know of any others that are even close to her age. The next closest we know of that’s here currently […] are about 45 years old, so it is very rare.”
Most albatross eggs at the atoll are laid in early December, with an incubation period of 64 to 65 days. As a result, most chicks hatch in January or February. Earlier this year, the USFWS Pacific shared a video on X showing Wisdom returning to her newly hatched chick.
As of February 2025, Wisdom appeared healthy and active with her chick.
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