albatross

Is named albatross yet Sea bird found mostly in the Pacific Ocean and in the Indian Ocean. East animal, whose feathers are white, is characterized by its large wingspan.

Albatrosses constitute the family known as Diomedeidae and they are divided into four genera and more than twenty species. At a general level, all of them coincide in their good flight capacity and that they feed on fish, krill and other aquatic species.

It is worth mentioning that the total number of species that make up the family has not yet been resolved Diomedeidae, and this gives rise to three different lists: the ones that most species of albatross recognize are Birdlife International and the IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature), whose number amounts to twenty-two; on the other hand, there are authorities that only accept fourteen of them, while for the North American ornithologist James Clements, who died in 2005, the limit is thirteen.

If we take into account the taxonomy accepted by the IUCN, we are faced with four genera, whose names are Diomedea, Phoebastria, Thalassarche Y Phoebetria; the latter is made up of only two species, while Thalassarche contains ten. Since this information depends on the point of view, that is, on the appreciations of each student of the subject, it is common to find certain differences when moving from one source to another; for example, some species of the genera Phoebastria Y Thalassarche may appear under Diomedea.

Let's see the main characteristics of one species of each gender:

* Diomedea exulans: its common name in Spanish is wandering albatross or traveler, and it is the first albatross to have been described, as well as the most widespread species. Its height can reach 1.3 m, and its wings can have a wingspan of up to 3.5 m (although one individual has been recorded that reached 3.7 m). Its beak, on the other hand, is around 20 cm long, the largest of all albatrosses;

* Phoebastria irrorata: also know as wavy albatross, is the only one species that lives in the tropics. It is known that it only breeds on one of the Galapagos islands, Hispaniola, and that it makes its nests in lava areas;

* Thalassarche melanophrys: the black browed albatross before belonged to the genus Diomedea. Their wings are about a third shorter than those of the previous two, although this does not prevent them from being skilled gliders. In fact, they are capable of flying for long periods;

* Phoebetria fusca: it is called smoked albatross and its habitat is all the oceans of the southern hemisphere. Compared to the three species mentioned above, their wings are the shortest, as they do not exceed 2 m. The Colour The smoky chestnut of its feathers has given rise to its name.

These birds form colonies, creating their nests on remote islands. His behavior is monogamous: they establish couples that they maintain throughout life. Another characteristic of the albatross is that, in general, they reproduce in the same colony where they were born.

Albatross colonies often become tourist attractions since many people they enjoy watching these animals. Among sailors, it is often said that albatrosses bring good luck or that these animals inhabit the souls of those who died on the high seas. Anyway, in ancient times it was common for sailors to catch albatrosses to eat them.

According to International Union for Conservation of Nature, there are nine species of albatrosses in danger of extinction and another eight in condition vulnerability. This means that more than half of the albatross species are at risk of disappearing.

AlbatrossFinally, it is also the name of a former aircraft manufacturer (Albatros Flugzeugwerke), of a Venezuelan airline (Albatros Airlines) and a draft aerospace that, in the decade of 1970, existed in the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics.