In November 2018 I was lucky enough to be sent to work in the South Atlantic. One of the highlights of this trip (among over 40 species of seabird!!) was a pair of Royal Albatrosses that met up on the open sea, about as far from land as is possible on the planet.
It was an unbelievably touching experience as the pair met, and after some circling around each other went into a full pair bonding greeting with "singing" (not really the word for what albatrosses do!!), wing-spreading, a head-shaking dance, bill rubbing and mutual preening.
As I stood there on deck, thousands of miles from home and loved ones it was difficult, well impossible really, to see this as just two animals performing a ritual. As these birds mate for life and don't even breed each year it must be important to keep the relationship going even if they are separated for months at a time. Here they definitely took a time out for each other on the open sea.
To witness this presumably chance, yet incredibly intimate, meeting of a pair of birds so far offshore and to see how much time they put into greeting each other and working on their pair bond made me realise how far from home I was and had I met my better half right then I would have probably done a few head throws and wing flaps myself.
Words don't really work here so here are some pictures:
It was an unbelievably touching experience as the pair met, and after some circling around each other went into a full pair bonding greeting with "singing" (not really the word for what albatrosses do!!), wing-spreading, a head-shaking dance, bill rubbing and mutual preening.
As I stood there on deck, thousands of miles from home and loved ones it was difficult, well impossible really, to see this as just two animals performing a ritual. As these birds mate for life and don't even breed each year it must be important to keep the relationship going even if they are separated for months at a time. Here they definitely took a time out for each other on the open sea.
To witness this presumably chance, yet incredibly intimate, meeting of a pair of birds so far offshore and to see how much time they put into greeting each other and working on their pair bond made me realise how far from home I was and had I met my better half right then I would have probably done a few head throws and wing flaps myself.
Words don't really work here so here are some pictures:
Valentines Royal Albatrosses reinforcing their pair bond
And a few gratuitous flight shots - love the way seabirds often dip a wing tip in the sea....
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