Northern Royal Albatross
Diomedea sanfordi
The Northern Royal Albatross (Diomedea sanfordi) is a rare albatross found in 7 countries, weighing about 8.9 kg. The northern royal albatross or toroa, is a large seabird in the albatross family.
About the Northern Royal Albatross
The northern royal albatross or toroa, is a large seabird in the albatross family. It was split from the closely related southern royal albatross as recently as 1998, though not all scientists support that conclusion and some consider both of them to be subspecies of the royal albatross.
Text adapted from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
How to identify it
The northern royal albatross is typically about 115 cm (45 in) tall, weighs 6.2 to 8.2 kg (14–18 lb), and has a wingspan from 270 to 305 cm (106–120 in). The juvenile has a white head, neck, upper mantle, rump, and underparts. There is dark speckling on the crown and rump. Its lower mantle and back are white with more black speckling than the crown, and it has dark black-brown upper wings with white flecks on its coverts. Its tail is white with a black-brown tip, as are its underwings. There is a black band behind the leading edge of its wings between the carpal joint and the tip.
What the Northern Royal Albatross sounds like
Where it lives
When to see it
Best months: January, February, March, April, May, June, July, August, October, November, December, with peak activity in December. It is a resident species across most of its range.
Watch the Northern Royal Albatross on live cams
Browse all 118 bird cams worldwide, live and seasonal, by region and species.
Easily confused with
Quick questions
- How do you identify a Northern Royal Albatross?
- The northern royal albatross is typically about 115 cm (45 in) tall, weighs 6.2 to 8.2 kg (14–18 lb), and has a wingspan from 270 to 305 cm (106–120 in). Full identification notes are on this page.
- How big is a Northern Royal Albatross?
- The Northern Royal Albatross is a huge sized bird weighing about 8.9 kg.
- Where can you see a Northern Royal Albatross?
- The Northern Royal Albatross occurs in 7 countries, including New Zealand, Chile, Australia, Argentina and South Africa.
- What does a Northern Royal Albatross sound like?
- You can listen to a field recording of the Northern Royal Albatross on this page, contributed to xeno-canto under open licences.
- What birds look similar to a Northern Royal Albatross?
- The Northern Royal Albatross is most easily confused with the Antipodean Albatross, the Southern Royal Albatross and the Tristan Albatross.
- Is the Northern Royal Albatross endangered?
- The Northern Royal Albatross is listed as Endangered on the IUCN Red List.
Learn the Northern Royal Albatross for real
BeakBrain drills you on photos and calls until you can greet this bird by name in the field. Free to play, on any device.
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