West

World's oldest known wild bird, Wisdom, is spotted courting new suitors

Published

2 years ago

April 27, 2024

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World's oldest known wild bird, Wisdom, is spotted courting new suitors

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The world’s oldest known wild bird may have lost her mate, but she was recently seen courting new suitors.

The Laysan albatross, or mōlī, known as Wisdom has been photographed dancing with potential mates at the Midway Atoll National Wildlife Refuge in the North Pacific Ocean, according to SWNS, the British news service.

The seabird is recognized by her well-known band number Z333.

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She is thought to be around 72 years old.

Wisdom has been seen only sporadically since arriving for nesting season in late November, according to reports.

Wisdom the Laysan albatross, on left, with a band on her leg, is reportedly the world’s oldest known wild bird. She was spotted recently taking part in mating dances and courtship rituals with potential suitors. (SWNS)

In March, she was spotted socializing with male birds.

Her long-time mate, Akeakamai, has yet to be seen this season, and he was not seen during the last two nesting seasons, either, according to SWNS.

Mōlī females lay a single egg in the first half of December, said Jonathan Plissner, supervisory wildlife biologist at the national wildlife refuge. (They lay only one egg per year.)

BABY PENGUINS DIVE OFF 50-FOOT CLIFF IN 1ST-OF-ITS-KIND FOOTAGE FROM NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC

Yet that didn’t stop the 72-year-old Wisdom from participating in mating dances last month with a few suitors.

“She was still actively courting other birds in March,” Plissner told the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. “She is quite spry for a septuagenarian.”

Wisdom the Laysan albatross, right, believed to be the world’s oldest known wild bird, was spotted taking part in mating dances and courtship rituals with potential suitors in March at the Midway Atoll National Wildlife Refuge. (SWNS)

Biologists first identified and banded Wisdom in 1956 after she laid an egg. The large seabirds aren’t known to breed before age five.

It is estimated that Wisdom has produced 50 to 60 eggs and as many as 30 chicks that fledged in her lifetime, according to Plissner.

BIRD ATTEMPTS TO ‘CLEAN HOUSE’ WHEN IT DOESN’T LIKE THE DECORATIONS

Each year, millions of seabirds return to Midway Atoll National Wildlife Refuge in the North Pacific Ocean to nest and raise their young.

Wisdom the albatross was first banded by a biologist in 1956.

It’s a sanctuary for millions of “seabirds, shorebirds and various marine life who all call the island home,” according to the refuge’s website.

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“The purpose of Midway Atoll National Wildlife Refuge and Battle of Midway National Memorial is to serve as a refuge and breeding ground for migratory birds, monk seals, sea turtles and other wildlife, while also protecting cultural resources from the Commercial Pacific Cable Company to the historic Battle of Midway,” the site also notes.

Wisdom, the beloved Laysan albatross, has been spotted mingling with potential suitors well into her 70s at Midway Atoll National Wildlife Refuge March 18, 2024. (SWNS)

Several years ago, Fox News Digital reported that when not laying eggs, Wisdom spends 90% of her time at sea, feeding on squid and fish eggs.

“In the past, many albatrosses were banded with aluminum bands that sometimes became corroded by sand and salt water. These early bands would often fall off in 20 years or less,” the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service said in 2018.

But the same is not true for Wisdom, who was reportedly first banded by a biologist named Chandler Robbins in 1956. Experts have replaced Wisdom’s bands over the years.

The Laysan albatross, known as mōlī in Hawaiian, is a long-living seabird that pairs for life with a single mate, Live Science reported.

“The birds are named after a breeding colony of 145,000 pairs on Laysan, one of the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands located 930 miles (1,500 kilometers) northwest of Honolulu.”

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Montana

Women who made agriculture work in Montana

Published

1 hour ago

February 28, 2026

Press Room

Women who made agriculture work in Montana

Lisa Schmidt
| Columnist

Recently, I was asked to talk about what it is like to be a female rancher.

I was flattered to be asked, but I don’t know the answer.

I do know what it is like to be a human rancher and I know that I admire many women who also are ranchers.

In fact, 36 percent of the farmers and ranchers in the U.S. are women and they manage almost half of America’s ag land.

Globally, we produce more than half of all food.

In Montana, we all benefit from amazing female leaders in agriculture.

If you want to know about improving soil health or the rewards of raising sheep, talk to Linda Poole in Malta.

If you want to learn how to organize a grassroots rancher’s organization and effect meaningful change, talk to Maggie Nutter in Sunburst.

Trina Bradley of Dupuyer will look you in the eye and tell you everything you need to know about the impacts of grizzlies on her ranch life.

Colleen Gustafson, on the Two Med, graciously hosts and educates non-ranchers for months at a time without strangling them, all while maintaining every fence, buying every bull and killing every weed on her ranch.

Adele Stenson of Wibaux and Holly Stoltz of Livingston find innovative solutions to ranching challenges and then — even harder — find ways to share these innovations with hard-headed, independent cusses who want to do it our own way.

In fact, I’ve noticed that often women seek novel innovations to deal with a ranching challenge.

If a man happens to be around, she might even run it past him.

It’s rubber band ranching – stretch with an idea, contract to assess it, then stretch again to implement it.

Long ago, my friend Michelle and I promoted the One Good Cow program at the Montana Stockgrowers Association meeting.

We asked cattle producers to donate one cow to ranchers who had lost so many in blizzards and floods that year.

As we stood on stage in a room full of dour, silent men, I remember finding the one person I knew and asking what he thought.

Just as he would bid at a livestock auction, he barely nodded his approval.

We ended up gathering more than 900 cows from across the nation and giving them to 67 producers.

One Good Cow was a good idea.

Now I don’t seek approval for my ideas so sometimes my rubber band doesn’t contract to assess one before I stretch into action.

That’s how I got myself into producing shelf-stable, ready-to-eat meals made with my beef and lamb.

This is a good idea, too.

I hope.

I wonder if it is easier to ranch as a woman in some ways.

Society pressures men to know all of the answers all of the time, but If I mess up, I try to learn from my mistake and move forward.

When Imposter Syndrome hits or we can’t find a solution to an unsolvable problem – the effects of climate change, commodity markets or competing demands from family – secretly faking it until we make it gets lonely.

The downward spiral of loneliness and the pressure to be perfect can lead to suicide.

Male ranchers kill themselves 3.5 times more often than the general public.

Female ranchers kill themselves, too, just a little less often.

I’m fortunate to have good friends who love me even when I’m far from perfect.

We laugh together, they remind me that I have a few good attributes even when I forget, they tolerate my weirdness and celebrate little successes.

They stave off loneliness.

They know all ranchers try our best, we appreciate a little grace, and a warm fire feels good to our cold fingers.

Lisa Schmidt raises grass-fed beef and lamb at the Graham Ranch near Conrad. Lisa can be reached at L.Schmidt@a-land-of-grass-ranch.com.

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Nevada

Nevada State Police averts ‘udder chaos’ in Eureka County

Published

1 hour ago

February 28, 2026

Press Room

Nevada State Police averts ‘udder chaos’ in Eureka County

EUREKA COUNTY, Nev. (KOLO) – On Friday, Feb. 27, the Nevada State Police assisted with a cattle crossing on State Route 306 at Interstate 80 in Eureka County.

“While not an everyday part of our job, we like to do our part to assist our local ranchers while keeping traffic from turning into udder chaos,” according to an agency Facebook post. “It was a perfect opportunity to be outside (even if our animal friends were a little moo-dy).”

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