Sooty Albatross
Phoebetria fusca
Summary 3
The Sooty Albatross, Dark-mantled Sooty Albatross or Dark-mantled Albatross,Phoebetria fusca, is a species of bird in the albatross family. They breed on sub-Antarctic islands and range at sea across the Southern Ocean from South America to Australia.
Description 4
Named after the sooty brown colour of its feathers, this albatross is medium-sized with a diamond-shaped tail. The sides of the head are slightly darker brown than the rest of the body (4) and the legs and feet are pale grey (2). A white crescent surrounds the eye, and the bill is black with a yellow-orange groove in the lower jaw (4).
Description 5
The Sooty Albatross is a medium sized albatross and measures about 85 cm (33 in), with a 2 m (6.6 ft) wingspan. Adult body mass ranges from 2.1 to 3.4 kg (4.6 to 7.5 lb). It is sooty-brown with darker shading on the sides of its head. It has a white crescent above and behind its eye. Its bill is black with an orange or yellow sulcus. The tail of this albatross is wide diamond shaped. Juveniles are similar to adults, although they can have paler feathers on the nape and upper back, possibly creating confusion with Light-mantled Albatross.
Range and habitat 5
This albatross nests on islands in the southern Atlantic Ocean (Gough Island and the Tristan da Cunha group) and Indian Ocean (Prince Edward Island, Marion Island, the Crozet Islands, Amsterdam Island, and Kerguelen Islands). They forage in both oceans north to about 30°S.
Sources and Credits
- (c) 2007 California Academy of Sciences, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-SA), http://calphotos.berkeley.edu/cgi/img_query?seq_num=28029&one=T
- (c) 3HEADEDDOG, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA), https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/af/Sooty_Albatross_CW.jpg
- Adapted by Brittany Burson from a work by (c) Wikipedia, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA), http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phoebetria_fusca
- (c) Wildscreen, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-SA), http://eol.org/data_objects/2603506
- (c) Wikipedia, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA), http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sooty_Albatross
More Info
Range Map
iNat Map
| Color | black, grey |
|---|---|
| Status | endangered |
