Royal Albatross Center

The Otago Peninsula is home to only mainland albatross breeding colony in the world. We did a short tour to learn about these birds and got to view 6 chicks and a few adults. Albatross are the world’s largest seabirds. They usually breed on remote offshore islands and spend at least 85% of their lives at sea, well away from land and humans. There are 22 species of albatross around the world, 18 of these are considered threatened on some level. We were able to see and learn more about the Northern Royal Albatriss or Toroa (Diomedea sanfordi). With a massive three metre wingspan, Northern Royal Albatross easily fly an estimated 190,000 kilometres a year using a process called dynamic soaring. Essentially, they lock their wings out in place and will fly into the wind to gain height before turning and flying with the wind to gain speed. They travel vast distances from their breeding grounds to feed on squid and octopus near the surface.