The albatross is an oceanic bird, making up the bird Family Diomedeidae. There are 24 species of albatross in existence. The albratross lives at sea most of the time. It catches fish for food. It only lands on islands to lay an egg. They only lay one egg each year. However, since their food is at sea, they can travel thousands of kilometers to deliver catch food and bring it back to their offspring.(1)

The wandering albatross, was made famous by Coleridge's Rime of the Ancient Mariner. This enourmous bird has a wingspread of from 10 to 12 ft, but the wings are only about 9 in wide. Their tapering wing design makes them excelent at gliding and flying. (2)

(3)

Of all of the species of albatrosses, nineteen of them are endangered close to the point of extinction, two of them critically so. This is due to the neglegence of long line fishers who, in baiting hooks for tuna, swordfish, and Patagonian toothfish, catch a few albatrosses as well. If long line fishers would use weighted long lines to ensure that the hooks sink quickly and only set the lines at night while albatrosses are not around, this tragedy could be greatly reduced. The number of albatross deaths is estimated at about 100,000 each year. To find out more information or what you can do to help save this graceful creature from extinction, visit http://www.environmentalaction.net/aa_albatross.htm. (4,5)


Here's an illustration of the albatross that the Mariner shot. [7]
Albatross Facts
The Albatross is the biggest sea bird on earth. The albatross has been nicknamed "the symbol of the southern ocean". Many Albatross species live in the New Zealand area. THey are part of the tube nose family of birds. They spend 85% of thier lives at sea. The only time they are not at sea is when they are nesting or breeding. (6)

An albatross can live to around 80 years old. [8]


An Albatross egg is the size of a coke can. On the Right is a chicken egg and in the middle is the albatross egg.(10)

The Mariner's killing of the albatross = loss of innocence, original sin, "bad luck to ship and all upon it"(9)

Source
(1)http://www.wfu.edu/biology/albatross/atwork/atwork.htm
(2) http://www.answers.com/topic/albatross
(3) http://www.praktejder.se/resor/newzealand/bilder/Shy-Albatross1-040307.jpg
(4) http://birds.suite101.com/blogs.cfm
(5) http://www.environmentalaction.net/aa_albatross.htm
(6)http://www.kcc.org.nz/birds/albatross.asp
[7]http://www.petcaretips.net/albatross-literature.html
[8]http://www.albatrossaction.org/fact_sheet.htm
(9) http://www.csicop.org/superstition/library/common.html
(10) www.wfu.edu/albatross/atwork/atwork.htm