Endangered albatross spotted off Marin County coast marks first-ever documented sighting north of Costa Rica

Birdwatchers aboard a seabird tour off the coast of Sonoma and Marin counties over the weekend are the first people in U.S. waters to spot a species of albatross that normally lives near the Galapagos Islands, according to local experts.

Sporting a bold white head, long yellow bill and massive wingspan nearing eight feet, the waved albatross was spotted Sunday afternoon by about two dozen people on the 65-foot New Sea Angler during an open ocean trip to observe sea birds.

Tour leader and longtime member of the Redwood Region Ornithological Society Peter Colasanti said it is the first-ever documented sighting of the bird north of Costa Rica.

“The experience was absolute bedlam,” Colasanti said in a phone call Tuesday.

“This is a bird that is critically endangered, it’s glamourous, it’s big, it’s beautiful, and it has never appeared in the United States of America,” he said.

According to Colasanti, the trip out almost didn’t happen, as the tour was undersold compared to previous tours that could accommodate up to 40 people. After deciding to go out with a smaller group, the tour traveled along its usual route of Bodega Canyon moving south to Cordell Bank National Marine Sanctuary off the coast of Marin County, where the waved albatross was spotted coming up behind the boat.

Local naturalist Lisa Hug was among those on board Sunday, and confirmed the sighting was the first-ever record of the bird north of Costa Rica.

“We could tell it was something special, even from a long distance, because nothing around here is that large,” Hug said Tuesday. “Everybody was cheering and jumping up and down on the boat.”

Glen Tepke, one of those who observed the bird Sunday, said in an email Tuesday that the sighting was gratifying “both as a birder who seeks out rare birds, and as a conservationist concerned about loss of biodiversity.”

“The excitement level on the boat when the bird was first identified was intense, with much screaming and shrieking, followed by beatific smiles from a dream come true,” Tepke said.

Also on board was birder Mike Carozza, who was fighting seasickness when he first spotted the bird on the horizon, he said in an email Tuesday.

“It was thrilling and humbling to see such an incredible, rare flying behemoth.  Being around so many nature lovers, who have seen countless awe-inspiring rare things in faraway places, as they went bananas like they had just won the bird Superbowl, was just as exciting,” he said. “Not often you’re hugging strangers in the middle of the ocean.”

According to Colasanti, the bird hung around the boat for about 45 minutes.

“This is a species of bird that is attracted to boats,” Colasanti said. “Down in the Galapagos, it will follow them, especially fisherman. The bird is a scavenger by nature.”

Colasanti, who identified the bird as a young adult by the rusty color on its back, said it was likely that bird simply wandered far from home. Albatross will often fly around for years feeding before they begin breeding.

Hug said it is hard to know if the albatross will stay in the area for long.

“It could be miles away by now, they can cover so much territory in such a short amount of time,” she said. “If it’s finding food, yea, it will stay. But if it decides it would rather search somewhere else for food, it will just go. They (birdwatchers) would be very lucky to find it again, but it’s not impossible.”