Bird Guide

Grey-headed Albatross vs Shy Albatross

Grey-headed Albatross (Thalassarche chrysostoma)

Grey-headed Albatross

Thalassarche chrysostoma

Huge3.5 kgMarine

The grey-headed albatross averages 81 cm (32 in) in length and 2.2 m (7.2 ft) in wingspan. Weight can range from 2.8 to 4.4 kg (6.2 to 9.7 lb), with a mean mass of 3.65 kg (8.0 lb). It has a dark ashy-grey head, throat, and upper neck, and its upper wings, mantle, and tail, are almost black. It has a white rump, underparts, and a white crescent behind its eyes. Its bill is black, with bright yellow upper and lower ridges, that shades to pink-orange at the tip. Its underwings are white with a lot of black on the leading edge and less on the trailing edge.

ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Photo: Charlotte Kirchner · CC BY 4.0
Shy Albatross (Thalassarche cauta)

Shy Albatross

Thalassarche cauta

Huge3.9 kgMarine

The shy albatross averages 90 to 99 cm (35–39 in) in length, 220 to 256 cm (87–101 in) wingspan, and 4.1 kg (9.0 lb) in weight. Alongside its similarly sized sister species, the Salvin's albatross, this species is considered the largest of the mollymawks or the small albatrosses. It is a black, white and slate-grey bird with the characteristic black thumb mark at the base of the leading edge of the underwing. Adults have a white forehead and a crown, which is bordered on the bottom with a dark eyebrow and pale grey face. Its mantle, tail and upperwing are grey-black, and the rest is white.

ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Photo: Rodrigo J De Marco · CC0

Where you might meet both

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Photos and recordings are credited to their authors under the licence shown. Full profiles: Grey-headed Albatross and Shy Albatross.