Survival and Longevity of the Northern Royal Albatross Diomedea epomophora sanfordi at Taiaroa Head 1937–93

Summary

A small and growing colony of Northern Royal Albatross has been monitored continuously from 1937 to 1993 using a marked population increasingly consisting of known-age birds. The mean ages of first return (four years) and first breeding (8–10 years) are documented, as are survival from fledging to five years (69.4%) and mean annual adult survival rates (94.6%). The history of female ‘D1=R15113’ known as ‘Grandma’, one of the founding birds of the colony, which reached a banded age of 51.5 years and probable actual age of 61+ years, is reviewed.