North Royal Albatross
#120 Do - Despite the photo not doing this justice (it is a stunningly beautiful place), visiting the world's only mainland breeding colony of northern royal albatross at Pukekura on the Otago Peninsula is a fantastic experience. In 1920 the first albatross egg was discovered here, but it was not until 1938 that the first successful fledgling was observed. Around 30 pairs return here to breed each year, arriving in September, an egg is laid in October/November and the parents share the 80 days of incubation. By September, after 240 days, it's ready to fledge and it spends the next 3-5 years at sea, then returns to Pukekura to breed. They usually mate for life, live for around 40 years and have a wing span of over 3 metres and weigh 8kg. Today we went as part of the Cadbury Carnival and saw 4 (3 are in this photo!) of the 23 chicks that are now 5 months old, they weigh up to 11kg and will soon go on a diet before they fly away in September. You can even watch one of the chicks live on a webcam http://www.doc.govt.nz/royalcam
