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Mar 20 2007 -- Sep 17 2008  Albatross Beached on Mile 136 Laysan Albatross. Photo ©2007 Diane and Dave Bilderback. A dead Laysan Albatross was found by Diane and Dave Bilderback half buried in the cold wet sand on CoastWatch Mile 136. The Coastal Observation and Seabird Survey Team (COASST) has found only one Laysan Albatross since 1999 at Ocean Shores, WA in 2006. Normal wingspan is almost seven feet. Photo ©2007 Diane and Dave Bilderback. This large sea bird has a wing span of 82 inches. It glides on those long, narrow wings and spends most of its life at sea. It feeds on squid, fish and roe, crustaceans, and carrion by landing on the ocean’s surface. Laysan Albatross is most numerous off Alaska during the spring and summer and is rare off the west coast during the late fall to spring. Breeding occurs mainly on the Hawaiian Islands. The Albatross has an elaborate visual and vocal courtship ritual on land and sometimes at sea. After mating, the pair goes to sea to feed. The male adds fat for his initial turn at incubation for two to four weeks, and the female feeds for egg formation. The single egg may weigh more than a pound, or more than 10 percent of the adult bird’s weight. After laying the egg, she departs to feed and then the parents trade off incubation and brooding. Contact: Dave Bilderback, Coos County Co-Coordinator, (541) 347-1335 ©2013 Oregon Shores •  CONTACT US