Wildlife Guide · Southern Ocean & North Pacific

Albatross

Diomedeidae

The ocean's greatest gliders — and the world's most threatened bird family.

Varies; most albatross species are threatened

A wandering albatross gliding low over the open ocean on long, narrow outstretched wings, with a pale body, dark wingtips and a large pinkish bill.

Image: Source: Wikimedia Commons — “Gibson's Albatross 0A2A4153” by JJ Harrison, CC BY-SA 3.0

In brief

An albatross is a large oceanic seabird of the family Diomedeidae, comprising about 22 species. Albatrosses have the longest wingspan of any living bird — up to around 3.5 metres in the wandering albatross — and glide vast distances over the Southern Ocean and North Pacific, coming ashore only to breed.

By the WARN Research & Conservation TeamChecked against IUCN Red List & CITES sourcesLast updated June 2026

Albatrosses are large seabirds of the family Diomedeidae, with around 22 species ranging across the Southern Ocean and the North Pacific. They are famous for having the longest wingspan of any living bird — the wandering albatross reaches roughly 3.5 metres — which lets them glide for thousands of kilometres over open water using barely a wingbeat. Superbly adapted to a life at sea, they come ashore only to breed, often on remote islands, and many pairs bond for life. Yet albatrosses are also the most threatened bird family on Earth, with many species classed as Vulnerable, Endangered or Critically Endangered, chiefly because they are killed as bycatch on longline fishing gear.

~22

species in the family Diomedeidae

~3.5 m

largest wingspan of any living bird

Most

species are threatened with extinction

50+ yrs

lifespan of long-lived individuals

Figures sourced from Albatross — Wikipedia, Wandering albatross — Wikipedia, IUCN Red List and other references on this page.

Albatross: Quick Facts

Vital statistics and key facts about the Albatross
Common name	Albatross
Family	Diomedeidae
Number of species	About 22
Largest wingspan	Up to ~3.5 m (wandering albatross)
Habitat	Open ocean; breeds on remote islands
Range	Southern Ocean and North Pacific
Diet	Squid, fish, krill; some scavenging
Lifespan	Often decades; some over 50 years
Clutch size	Usually a single egg
Main threat	Longline-fishing bycatch

Scientific Classification

Scientific classification of the Albatross
Kingdom	Animalia
Phylum	Chordata
Class	Aves
Order	Procellariiformes
Family	Diomedeidae
Genera	Diomedea, Thalassarche, Phoebastria, Phoebetria
Species	About 22 species

Conservation Status

IUCN Status: Albatrosses are the most threatened bird family in the world. Of about 22 species, many are listed by the IUCN as Vulnerable, Endangered or Critically Endangered, while only a few are nearer to Least Concern. Status varies by species, so no single category applies to the whole family.
Population: Varies widely by species; several are in long-term decline, with some of the rarest numbering only a few thousand breeding pairs.
Trend: Decreasing for many species
Assessed: Assessed per species by the IUCN Red List
CITES: Several albatross species are listed on the Convention on Migratory Species; international agreements also target seabird bycatch.

Longline and trawl fishing bycatch is the leading threat, compounded by introduced predators on breeding islands, plastic pollution and climate change. Proven mitigation measures, such as night setting, weighted lines and bird-scaring lines, can sharply reduce seabird deaths.

Key Facts: Albatross

Albatrosses (family Diomedeidae, about 22 species) are large seabirds of the open ocean.
The wandering albatross has the largest wingspan of any living bird, up to roughly 3.5 metres.
They use a technique called dynamic soaring to glide vast distances with very little effort.
Most spend years at sea, returning to land only to breed, and many pairs bond for life.
Albatrosses are the most threatened bird family on Earth, with many species Vulnerable, Endangered or Critically Endangered.
Longline-fishing bycatch is the leading driver of their decline.

Why do albatrosses have such enormous wings?

Albatrosses are built for a life of near-perpetual flight over the open ocean, and their wings are the key to it. The wandering albatross has the longest wingspan of any living bird, reaching around 3.5 metres, with the great albatrosses generally the largest. Their wings are long, narrow and stiff — a shape that excels at gliding rather than flapping. To stay aloft over featureless seas without exhausting themselves, albatrosses use a technique known as dynamic soaring. They repeatedly climb into the wind, then turn and swoop down across it, harvesting energy from the difference in wind speed between the wave troughs and the air higher up. The result is that an albatross can travel for hours, and cover thousands of kilometres, with scarcely a wingbeat. A tendon arrangement in the shoulder even lets them lock their wings open, holding them outstretched at little muscular cost. This efficiency is why albatrosses can forage across entire ocean basins and circle the globe between breeding seasons.

Where do albatrosses live and how do they breed?

Most albatross species live in the Southern Ocean, ranging across the seas around Antarctica, South America, southern Africa, Australia and New Zealand, and breeding on remote subantarctic and oceanic islands. A smaller group lives in the North Pacific. They are pelagic for most of their lives, drinking seawater and excreting excess salt through specialised glands above the bill, and coming ashore only to nest. Breeding is famously slow and deliberate. Albatrosses are long-lived — individuals can survive for decades, with some passing fifty years — and they typically mate for life, reuniting with the same partner across many seasons. Pairs perform elaborate courtship dances of bowing, bill-clattering and calling. Most lay only a single egg, and in the larger species the chick takes the best part of a year to fledge, so many pairs breed only once every two years. This low reproductive rate makes albatross populations slow to recover from any added source of adult deaths.

Why are albatrosses so threatened?

Albatrosses are widely regarded as the most threatened bird family on Earth. The single greatest pressure is bycatch in longline fisheries: birds dive on the baited hooks set behind fishing vessels, get caught, and are dragged underwater and drowned. Because albatrosses are long-lived and breed slowly, the loss of even modest numbers of breeding adults each year can drive steep population declines. Trawl fisheries also kill birds through collisions with cables. On their breeding islands, introduced predators such as rats, cats and mice prey on eggs, chicks and even adults, while plastic pollution and ingested debris add further harm. Climate change and shifting ocean conditions may compound these threats. The encouraging news is that bycatch is largely preventable: measures such as setting lines at night, weighting them to sink quickly, and trailing bird-scaring streamer lines can cut seabird deaths dramatically where they are adopted, offering a realistic path to recovery for many species.

Great albatrosses vs mollymawks

Feature	Great albatrosses (Diomedea)	Mollymawks (Thalassarche)
Size	Largest albatrosses; wingspan up to ~3.5 m	Smaller, more compact albatrosses
Example species	Wandering and royal albatrosses	Black-browed and grey-headed albatrosses
Bill colour	Large pale pinkish bill	Often dark bill with bright yellow or orange ridges
Plumage	Older birds become very white-bodied	Typically darker mantle and distinctive head markings
Breeding cycle	Chick takes ~a year; often breeds every other year	Many breed annually with a shorter chick-rearing period

What WARN Does

WARN does not run field projects specifically for albatrosses, which live far from the countries where our partners work out on the open ocean. This guide is part of WARN's free educational work: helping people understand the wildlife that shares our planet and the pressures it faces. The threats that drive albatross declines — habitat loss on breeding islands, introduced predators, pollution and unsustainable fishing — are the same forces that endanger many of the animals WARN does protect closer to home.

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Albatross: Frequently Asked Questions

What is the wingspan of an albatross?

The wandering albatross has the largest wingspan of any living bird, reaching around 3.5 metres from tip to tip. This makes it, along with the southern royal albatross, one of the largest flying birds in the world. Smaller albatross species, such as the mollymawks, have shorter wingspans but are still substantial seabirds built for long-distance gliding.

How long can an albatross fly without landing?

Albatrosses spend most of their lives at sea and can stay airborne for very long periods, gliding for days at a time. Using a technique called dynamic soaring, they harvest energy from the wind to cover thousands of kilometres with almost no flapping. Outside the breeding season some birds range across entire ocean basins, coming ashore only to nest.

Are albatrosses endangered?

Albatrosses are the most threatened bird family in the world. Of the roughly 22 species, many are classed by the IUCN as Vulnerable, Endangered or Critically Endangered. The chief cause is bycatch in longline fisheries, where birds are hooked and drowned. Because albatrosses breed slowly and live long, populations recover only slowly from added adult losses.

What do albatrosses eat?

Albatrosses feed mainly on squid, fish and krill, taken from at or near the ocean surface. They seize prey while sitting on the water or in shallow dives, and some scavenge offal and discards from fishing vessels. They can drink seawater, excreting the excess salt through special glands above the bill — an adaptation for a life spent far from fresh water.

Do albatrosses mate for life?

Most albatrosses form long-term pair bonds and typically mate for life, reuniting with the same partner across many breeding seasons. Pairs perform elaborate courtship dances of bowing, bill-clattering and calling to maintain the bond. They usually lay a single egg, and in the larger species raising a chick can take most of a year, so many pairs breed only every other year.

How long do albatrosses live?

Albatrosses are among the longest-lived birds. Many individuals survive for several decades, and some are known to pass fifty years of age. This long lifespan goes hand in hand with very slow breeding — a single egg, slow-growing chicks and often only one breeding attempt every two years — which is why losing breeding adults to fishing bycatch is so damaging to their populations.

Where do albatrosses live?

Albatrosses spend most of their lives over open ocean in the Southern Ocean and North Pacific, gliding thousands of kilometres with barely a wingbeat. They come ashore only to breed, often on remote islands, and many pairs bond for life. Around 22 species exist, but most are threatened — chiefly from longline fishing bycatch.

Are albatrosses dangerous?

Albatrosses do not attack people. The main danger they pose is indirect: they are the most threatened bird family on Earth, with many species classed as Vulnerable, Endangered or Critically Endangered because they are killed as bycatch on longline fishing gear. Losing breeding adults is especially damaging because pairs often raise only one chick every two years.

How big is an albatross?

The wandering albatross has the longest wingspan of any living bird — up to roughly 3.5 metres according to this guide's stats. That enormous wingspan lets albatrosses glide vast distances over open water. Body size varies among the roughly 22 species in the family Diomedeidae.

Sources & References

Population figures, conservation status and biological facts on this page are drawn from authoritative scientific and intergovernmental sources.

Terms used on this page

Plain-English definitions, from our wildlife and conservation glossary.

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