World's Oldest Seabird Has New Baby at 66

Liberty is the world's oldest breeding bird in the wild
By Newser Editors and Wire Services
Posted Feb 17, 2017 2:47 PM CST
World's Oldest Seabird Has a New Baby
In this Thursday, Feb. 7, 2017, photo provided by the photo provided by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service - Pacific Region shows Wisdom and her new chick at the Midway Atoll National Wildlife Refuge and Battle of Midway National Memorial in the Papahanaumokuakea Marine National Monument.   (Naomi Blinick)

The world's oldest known seabird has a new chick. The US Fish and Wildlife Service said Thursday Wisdom's offspring hatched at Midway Atoll National Wildlife Refuge last week. The Laysan albatross is at least 66 years old and is the world's oldest breeding bird in the wild, the AP reports. Fish and Wildlife Service project leader Bob Peyton says Wisdom has returned to Midway for over six decades. He says she has raised at least 30 chicks. Midway Atoll is home to the world's largest colony of albatross. The island about 1,200 miles northwest of Honolulu was the site of a pivotal World War II battle. Nearly 70% of the world's Laysan albatross rely on the atoll for habitat. Midway is part of the Papahanaumokuakea Marine National Monument. (More albatross stories.)

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