Behaviour Diomedea exulans is a biennial breeding species, although about 30% of successful and 35% of failed breeders (on average) defer breeding beyond the expected year. Adults return to colonies in November, and eggs are laid over a period of 5 weeks during December and January. Most chicks hatch in March and fledge in December. Birds usually return to colonies when 5-7 years old, though they can return when as young as 3 years old. Birds can start breeding as young as 7 or 8 years old, but more typically at 10-12 years old (Tickell 2000). Wandering Albatross typically forages in oceanic waters, however considerable time is spent over shelf areas during certain stages of the breeding season (BirdLife International 2004). Satellite tracking has revealed that juvenile birds tend to forage further north than adults (Weimerskirch et al. 2006, British Antarctic Survey, unpubl. data), bringing them into greater overlap with longline tuna fleets which may be driving falls in recruitment rates (Weimerskirch et al. 1997). Females may also be at greater risk of being caught in tuna fisheries since they tend to forage further north than males (Nel et al. 2002, Weimerskirch et al. 2003, Pinaud and Weimerskirch 2007, Jiménez et al. 2016). It is mostly a diurnal breeder, taking most prey by surface-seizing (ACAP 2009).

Habitat Breeding Wandering Albatross nests in open or patchy vegetation near exposed ridges or hillocks (Carboneras 1992).

Diet Adults feed at sea mainly on cephalopods and fish, often following ships and feeding on offal and galley refuse (Carboneras 1992, Cherel and Klages 1998). Patagonian Toothfish Dissostichus eleginoides is the primary fish species in the diet, potentially obtained as discarded offal (Xavier et al. 2004).

Foraging range This wide-ranging species has a circumpolar distribution, and both breeding and non-breeding birds have very large foraging ranges. Satellite tracking data indicate that breeding birds forage at very long distances from colonies (up to 4,000 km) and that foraging strategies change throughout the breeding season (Froy et al. 2015). A fledgling covered 6,590 km in 28 days after leaving the colony on Marion Island (Clokie 2007).

Diomedea exulans breeds on South Georgia (Georgias del Sur) (c. 18% of the global breeding population), Prince Edward Islands (South Africa) (c. 44% of the global population), Crozet Islands and Kerguelen Islands (French Southern Territories) (approximately 38% of the global population) and Macquarie Island (Australia) (approximately four pairs breeding per year), with a total global population of c. 8,050 pairs breeding in any given year (ACAP 2009). At South Georgia, the population declined by 1.8% per annum between 1984 and 2004 (Poncet et al. 2006), and continued to decline by 1.8% per annum between 2004 and 2015 (A. Wolfaardt in litt. 2016). The population on Crozet declined by 54% between 1970 and 1986. From the mid-1980s to late 1990s, the Crozet, Kerguelen and Prince Edward Islands populations appeared to be stable or increasing (Weimerskirch et al. 1997, Weimerskirch and Jouventin 1998, Crawford et al. 2003, Ryan et al. 2003), but declines were later detected (H. Weimerskirch in litt. 2008, Ryan et al. 2009). Overall declines are estimated to exceed 30% over 70 years. Recovery is believed to be impeded by a decline in recruitment rate (Weimerskirch et al. 2006). Non-breeding and juvenile birds remain north of 50°S between subantarctic and subtropical waters with a significant proportion crossing the Indian Ocean to wintering grounds around the southern and eastern coast of Australia (Weimerskirch et al. 2014). A significant proportion of the Crozet and Kerguelen populations disperse into the Pacific and the western coast of South America (Weimerskirch et al. 2014, 2015).