The Southern royal albatross (Diomedea epomophora) is a large seabird from the albatross family. At an average wingspan of above 3 m (9.8 ft), it is one of the two largest species of albatross, together with the Wandering albatross.
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NocturnalNocturnality is an animal behavior characterized by being active during the night and sleeping during the day. The common adjective is "nocturnal",...
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DiurnalDiurnal animals are active during the daytime, with a period of sleeping or other inactivity at night. The timing of activity by an animal depends ...
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CarnivoreA carnivore meaning 'meat eater' is an organism that derives its energy and nutrient requirements from a diet consisting mainly or exclusively of a...
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MolluscivoreA molluscivore is a carnivorous animal that specializes in feeding on molluscs such as gastropods, bivalves, brachiopods, and cephalopods. Known mo...
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PiscivoresA piscivore is a carnivorous animal that eats primarily fish. Piscivorous is equivalent to the Greek-derived word ichthyophagous. Fish were the die...
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GlidingGliding flight is heavier-than-air flight without the use of thrust and is employed by gliding animals. Birds in particular use gliding flight to m...
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NomadicNomadic animals regularly move to and from the same areas within a well-defined range. Most animals travel in groups in search of better territorie...
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CongregatoryCongregatory animals tend to gather in large numbers in specific areas as breeding colonies, for feeding, or for resting.
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OviparousOviparous animals are female animals that lay their eggs, with little or no other embryonic development within the mother. This is the reproductive...
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Soaring birdsSoaring birds can maintain flight without wing flapping, using rising air currents. Many gliding birds are able to "lock" their extended wings by m...
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SeabirdSeabirds (also known as marine birds) are birds that are adapted to life within the marine environment. While seabirds vary greatly in lifestyle, b...
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SemiaquaticSemiaquatic animals are those that are primarily or partly terrestrial but that spend a large amount of time swimming or otherwise occupied in wate...
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MonogamyMonogamy is a form of relationship in which both the male and the female has only one partner. This pair may cohabitate in an area or territory for...
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Generally solitaryGenerally solitary animals are those animals that spend their time separately but will gather at foraging areas or sleep in the same location or sh...
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starts withThe juvenile Souther royal albatross has a white head, neck, upper mantle, rump, and underparts. There are black speckles on the mantle and dark brown or black wings with white flecks on coverts. The tail is white except for the black tip as is the under-wing. Young birds soon lose the black on their tail and backs. White appears on the upperwing gradually, as speckles starting from the leading edge. Southern royal albatrosses of all ages have a pink bill with black on the cutting edge on the upper mandible, and the legs are flesh-colored. Young birds with all-dark upperwings can be hard to differentiate from the Northern royal albatross.
Southern royal albatrosses range along the southern oceans concentrating on the west and east coast of southern South America, and also in the waters surrounding New Zealand. The majority of the world's population of Southern royal albatrosses nest on the rat-free subantarctic Campbell Island. There are smaller colonies on Adams Island and Auckland Island in the Auckland Islands and Enderby Island. Nesting grounds of Southern royal albatrosses include tussock grassland, plateaus, or ridges.
Southern royal albatrosses spend most of their life in the open ocean and only come on land to nest and raise their young. They are generally solitary birds but gather in places where food is abundant or around fishing boats. Immature birds and those that didn't find a mate may gather in large colonies on land in loafing areas. Southern royal albatrosses can be active both during the day and night. Their foraging activities normally take place within a 1250 km (777 miles) radius of the breeding site. Although they travel vast distances, royal albatrosses in general prefer to forage in somewhat shallower waters and closer to continental shelves.
Southern royal albatrosses are carnivores (piscivores, molluscivores) and scavengers. They eat squid and fish, with smaller amounts of carrion, crustaceans, and salps.
Southern royal albatrosses are monogamous and for pairs for life. They lay eggs biennially (every two years) usually in November or December. Southern royal albatrosses attract their mates by performing bill-snapping, clapping, and gulping. Other ways also include sky-calling with outstretched wings, and neck and head stretched upwards. The female typically lays one egg and both parents will incubate the egg, and rear their chick. Incubation lasts 79 days. After the chick is born it takes about 240 days for a baby to grow its wings fully and fly by itself. Young Southern royal albatrosses become reproductively mature and start to breed between 9 and 11 years of age.
By the 1880s, Southern royal albatrosses were extirpated from Auckland Island and Enderby Island. Longline fishing is a major problem and a possible emerging threat is Dracophyllum, a shrub that is taking away from their nesting range. Pigs and cats are another problem, as they take chicks and eggs, on Auckland Island.
According to the IUCN Red List, the total population size of the Southern royal albatross is approximately 27,200 mature individuals. Currently, this species is classified as Vulnerable (VU) on the IUCN Red List, but its numbers today are stable.
