World's oldest albatross lays egg at age 74

After finding a new mate, the female Laysan albatross Wisdom laid a new egg on Midway Atoll, adding to her brood.

At 74 years old, a Laysan albatross named Wisdom is the world's oldest known wild bird. However, she's been busy breeding, laying another egg this year at Hawaii's Midway Atoll National Wildlife Refuge, Forbes reports. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) announced Wisdom's new egg on social media on December 3.

Wisdom and her mate with the new egg. (Photo: USFWS).

Laysan albatrosses lay only one egg per breeding season. They are migratory seabirds. Wisdom and her kin arrive at Midway Atoll in the fall to breed, usually around Thanksgiving. Biologists banded Wisdom in 1956, allowing the forest service to track her over time. Her age is approximate, but she was banded after she laid an egg and Laysan albatrosses do not breed until at least 5 years old. She has a ring on her leg with the number "Z333 ." USFWS experts estimate that the female albatrosses laid about 60 eggs and had 30 fully fledged chicks.

The new egg is Wisdom's first in four years. Wisdom's long-time mate, Akeakamai, disappeared a few years ago. Wisdom has found a new mate, marking a major change in her decades-long relationship with Akeakamai. Her new mate also wears a ring. Paired birds typically reunite each year and share parenting duties. Midway Atoll biologist Jon Plissner and his colleagues are confident the egg will hatch.

More than a million albatrosses use Midway Atoll as a place to incubate and raise their young. They typically feed on squid, fish and crustaceans, according to the Hawaii Department of Land and Natural Resources.

The Laysan albatross has faced many challenges in recent years, including pollution, invasive species threats, strikes with buildings and aircraft, and human disturbance of its breeding grounds. Climate change is also a threat. Nesting populations on low-lying atolls are vulnerable to rising sea levels, storm events, and ocean swells associated with climate change. The Laysan albatross is listed as near threatened on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List. The IUCN estimates their population at around 1.6 million mature individuals, of which Wisdom is the most famous.

Wisdom and her mate will spend months caring for their young, if they hatch. The animals typically incubate their eggs for two months. If they hatch in early 2025, the young will be mature and ready to fledge by July of that year.