Black-footed albatross
Phoebastria nigripes
Identification Tips:
- Length: 28 inches Wingspan: 80 inches
- Sexes similar
- Large seafaring bird with extremely long wings
- Dark gray bill, head, body, wings, and legs
- Undertail coverts and underside of flight feathers somewhat pale
Adult:
- White at base of bill
- Sometimes has white on belly
Immature:
- Like adult but less white on bill and belly
Similar species:
Similarly pelagic shearwaters and petrels are smaller with shorter wings.
Also dark, but rare, first-year Short-tailed Albatross has pink bill and legs.
Other albatross species have white bodies and heads.
Length and wingspan from: Robbins, C.S., Bruun, B., Zim, H.S., (1966). Birds of North America. New York: Western Publishing Company, Inc.