Shy Albatross

Overview
Shy Albatross: Large seabird with white body and gray back. The bill is gray with a yellow tip and base. Underwing is white with diagnostic narrow black margin. Tail is gray. Legs and feet are pink. Soaring flight on stiff, slightly drooped wings. Often interuppted with several slow deep wing beats.

Range and Habitat
Shy Albatross: Breeds on only three islands, south of Tasmania, including Albatross Island, Mewstone, and Pedra Branca. Nests on rocks and feeds in waters over the continental shelf, including in harbors and bays.

INTERESTING FACTS
The Shy Albatross is also known as the White-capped Albatross or the Shy Mollymawk. Albatrosses can live for 60 years but breed so slowly that they are at risk of extinction within the next century. The main threat is long-line fishing. More than 100,000 die each year when they are caught in the baited hooks used to catch tuna. It is the only albatross species endemic to Australia. The current population is estimated at 55,000 to 60,000 individuals, including immatures. A group of albatrosses are known collectively as a "flight", "rookery", and "weight" of albatrosses.