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Albatrosses



Greetings all,

As one of the fortunate few that say the Yellow-nosed Albatross, I can
only say it was a mega thrill.

For the record, the bird was a subadult, approximately 1 year away from
full adult status. The plumage was fully adult but the bill was not
quite there. This is not surprising given the Feb date (breeding season)
as most full adults would be near or on the breeding grounds at this
time (they don't breed annually). One of the aspects of the aspects of
the bird which surprised a lot of people was how "small" it was (for an
albatross). Basically, except for a larger bill, (and of course much
longer wings, it was about the size of a Great Black-backed Gull (check
the measurements in Harrison). It reminded me of the Grey-headed
Albatrosses I've seen in the southern oceans, but not as dark headed. It
was my 9th species of albatross.

It occurs to me that, while a long shot, I do believe the bird might
possibly be relocated. Most Yellow-nosed records seem to be from
nearshore waters. This bird was clearly associated with the gulls and
gannets, and likely because they were where the food was. There are a
lot of fishing boats working the inshore waters for gray sea trout and
although there were no fishing boats with the bird per se, the amount of
food we were throwing overboard to to that point was considerable to say
the least. I believe that if the bird remains in the area (who knows),
the circumstances which brought it to us (or vice versa) last Saturday
might repeat.

Finally, as a confirmation of what has already been suggested, this
sighting is in deed the first credible sight record for the state. I
just reread the details of a Yellow-nosed report received and rejected
by the Records Committee. The bird described in report is so far off the
mark from Yellow-nosed, it is a wonder that that was even claimed. In
fact, the description given lists specific field marks which
convincingly contradict every species of albatross known. There are two
other claims in the literature which are lacking in details except that
the observer (same in both cases) said he didn't know what he saw and
much later (years?) changed his mind. No details were provided and the
circumstances seem somewhat questionable.

I'm planning to make a second try. Besides, I still could use a Puffin
in North Carolina.

Mike Tove
Cary, NC
mtove@nissan.net