It’s my favorite time of year. Christmas lights are twinkling. Cookies are baked. Deer aging is over. And Wisdom has returned once again. 

Wisdom is the oldest known wild bird in the world. She’s a Laysan albatross that nests on Midway Atoll National Wildlife Refuge and this year she is 74 years old. 

I’ve been a BIG fan of Wisdom for years and every December the USFWS bestows upon me the priceless gift of announcing her return after a year at sea. And news had arrived that she has an egg. It’s her first in 4 years. Her life partner disappeared several years ago forcing her to find a new mate to bond with. With her smoky eyes and flawless feathers, she is royalty. 

Close up of the eye of a Laysan albatross
Photo USFWS

There is no telling what Wisdom has seen in her lifetime, where she has travelled, or what she knows. Having laid 50-60 eggs and successfully fledged 30 chicks, she embodies her name. Laysan albatross are long lived birds (50+ years), but we don’t know if Wisdom’s marvelous age is the exception or the rule. 

What does it take to survive the perils of the albatross world? Tsunamis, sharks, plastic, and fishing lines – any one of them can snatch the joy Wisdom brings me each December. 

Photo USFWS

What makes some animals bust out of the bell curve? We talk about averages a lot on the blog. Average is the norm, but no one is interested in them. Poor Joe was mocked and ridiculed for being average. Everyone wants to know about the oldest, longest, biggest thing out there. 

I, like the average person, enjoy these exceptions as well. Fresh off my annual round of deer aging, only one of the 990+ deer I saw made an impression – a doe with teeth so worn, she for sure was a teenager. We know these deer exist. We’ve documented multiple examples. How they do it is the mystery. 

I am Average Joe’s champion and defender of middle-aged does and always will be. There are reasons for the bell curve, but the tails are where we find Wisdom. I can’t help but wonder at what age is wisdom bestowed. Maybe 2025 will be my year 😉

-Jeannine Fleegle
Wildlife Biologist
PA Game Commission

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