A 72-year-old named Wisdom is the oldest known wild bird

Mooney Goes Wild contributor Terry Flanagan shares his latest round up of nature news.

The oldest known wild bird is an albatross. And how old is she? At least 72 years old. How do we know? Because she was ringed in 1952 by the US Geological Survey (USGS) and has been christened 'Wisdom'. The tag bears the designation Z333.

And why is she in the news now? Because she has returned to the Midway Atoll National Wildlife Rescue in the Pacific. A volunteer spotted the septuagenarian at the refuge on Friday, December 1, 2023. And she looks good for her age! These birds return to tiny atolls in the Pacific every year starting in October.

And it gets better. Wisdom's longtime mate, Akeakamai ('Lover of Wisdom') has been spotted with her. Like most pairs of these birds, these two returned every year to the same nest site to lay one egg. Over her long lifetime, Wisdom is thought to have laid some 50 to 60 eggs. About 30 of her chicks "fledged".

Wisdom’s continued contribution to the fragile albatross population is remarkable and important. Her health and dedication have led to the birth of other healthy offspring, which will help recover albatross populations.

The population of these birds falls in the category of "near-threatened." They’re no longer hunted as they were in the early 1900s. But their numbers haven’t yet recovered.

In 2009, scientists estimated that around 10,000 albatrosses died annually due to poisoning at Midway. Chicks born in nests close to buildings left behind by the Navy ingested lead-based paint chips that led to their deaths.

By August 2018, the US had remediated the lead problem and declared Midway Atoll lead-free.

Albatrosses are difficult to study because they spend up to 90% of their lives in the air, moving from their summer feeding ground in the northern Pacific, to the tiny atolls in the mid-Pacific that are their places to nest.

But, with a tag, it makes it so much easier.

And the news gets even better. Wisdom has laid an egg, the first she has laid in four years. Here's hoping for yet another offspring from this amazing bird.