Laysan Albatross Similar Species Comparison
Main SpeciesLaysan Albatross
Adult/immature
Very large seabird with narrow, pointed wings. Long, thick, hooked bill is pale. Head and rump white, with dark tail and dark shading on the face.
© Nancy Christensen / Macaulay LibraryHawaii, May 27, 2017Adult/immature
Very large seabird with narrow, pointed wings and distinctive looping flight style; rarely flaps wings. Underwings are patchy white with variable amounts of dark. Grayish smudge on face.
© Richard MacIntosh / Macaulay LibraryAlaska, June 07, 2017Adult
Nests on the ground on islands in the Hawaiian island chain and off Mexico; flies to the Gulf of Alaska to forage. Chicks take about 6 months to fledge.
© Benjamin Clock / Macaulay LibraryHawaii, January 23, 2014Not all videos have sound
Adult/immature
Forages at sea, either by landing and dabbling, or by picking food items from the surface in flight. Note all-brown back and grayish wash on face.
© Tim Lenz / Macaulay LibraryCalifornia, August 06, 2010Juvenile
Chicks are wispy brown with pale or blond highlights and a dark bill. Laysan Albatrosses nest among short vegetation, mainly in the remote Northwest Hawaiian Islands; also small colonies on Kauai and Oahu and on a few Mexican Islands.
© Jason Van / Macaulay LibraryHawaii, April 02, 2017Breeding adult
Feeds at sea on squid and fish as well as flying-fish eggs and other items attached to floating debris.
© Timothy Barksdale / Macaulay LibraryCalifornia, February 01, 1997Not all videos have sound
Juvenile
Older chicks tend to retain fuzzy brown head and neck down while molting into flight feathers before fledging.
© Noah Frade / Macaulay LibraryHawaii, June 13, 2017Adults/immatures with Northern Fulmars and orca
Spends most of the year at sea, sometimes in flocks especially around fishing boats. More likely to sit on the sea surface during calm winds when dynamic soaring is more difficult.
© Vicki Sandage / Macaulay LibraryAlaska, June 05, 2017Adult/immature
Spends most of the year on the open ocean. Characteristic looping flight style takes advantage of prevailing winds to fly while rarely flapping wings.
© Matt Brady / Macaulay LibraryCalifornia, July 31, 2010Similar SpeciesBlack-footed Albatross
Adult
Black-footed Albatross is all dark, without the white head, belly, and rump of Laysan Albatross.
© Brian Sullivan / Macaulay LibraryCalifornia, July 25, 2009Similar SpeciesShort-tailed Albatross
Adult
Adult Short-tailed Albatross has a larger, pink bill compared to Laysan Albatross's smaller, yellowish bill. Adult Short-tailed has yellow on the head and neck and a white, not brown, back.
© James (Jim) Holmes / Macaulay LibraryTokyo, April 26, 2012Similar SpeciesWestern Gull
Breeding adult
Western Gulls are more likely to be seen near the coast rather than in the open ocean like Albatrosses. They are smaller than Laysan Albatrosses with a gray, not brown, back, and a smaller, non-hooked bill.
© Joel Rurik / Macaulay LibraryOregon, April 12, 2016Similar SpeciesWestern Gull
Adult
Western Gulls are smaller with shorter wings than Laysan Albatrosses and a different flight style involving more flapping. Western Gulls have gray wings with black wingtips and all-white tails, unlike the brown back and dark tail of Laysan Albatross.
© Greg Gillson / Macaulay LibraryCalifornia, March 08, 2015Rotate Your Device to Better Compare
Compare with Similar Species
Click on an image to compare
Species in This Family
Albatrosses(Order: Procellariiformes, Family: Diomedeidae)
Don't miss a thing! Join our email list
The Cornell Lab will send you updates about birds,
birding, and opportunities to help bird conservation.