Chick feeding in the wandering albatross Diomedea exulans Linnæus

It has long been known that the young of the wandering albatross (Diomedea exulans) do not fly until eight or nine months after hatching, and the problem of how this long fledgeling period fits into the breeding cycle of the adults has caused some speculation among naturalists acquainted with the species1–6 Excellent descriptions are available of the birds at sea and on the breeding grounds, but it is only recently that detailed study within a large population has been undertaken7