World Albatross Day celebrations around the world: a photographic record

Translocated Black-footed Albatrosses were featured by Mexico’s Grupo de Ecología y Conservación de Islas to celebrate World Albatross Day on 19 June 2024

The Albatross and Petrel Agreement inaugurated World Albatross Day in 2020.  The fifth  “WAD” was marked last month with the theme ‘Marine Protected Areas – Safeguarding our Oceans’.  The day (“WAD2024”) was marked around the world with banners displayed on seabird islands, activities back at home, such as the Australian Antarctic Division’s regular baking of “albicakes”, and via social media, such as the Artists and Biologists Unite for Nature’s collage poster, featuring 47 albatross artworks produced in collaboration with ACAP.

A photographic record of the other ways WAD2024 was marked and that have caught ACAP’s eye follows.

The Friends of Midway Atoll National Wildlife Refuge marked WAD2024 with a Laysan Albatross flying over the lagoon at Midway Atoll (Kuaihelani), photograph by USFWS Volunteer Keelee Martin

In South Africa the Tygerberg Bird Club posted a portfolio of albatross faces to its Facebook Group to mark WAD2024, photographs by Michael Mason

Eve Howard of Eve Howard Ceramics, in Hobart Tasmania, writes on her Facebook page: “Happy World Albatross Day, as many of you know I love making albatross and here is one I'm currently creating. I have to say they are easier to make than they are to get through the kiln firing process! The left eye of Horus (the moon) and the right eye of Ra (the sun)"

Birds New Zealand came up with its own take on Katsushika Hokusai’s much loved “The Great Wave off Kanagawa” for World Albatross Day - Te Rā O Ngā Toroa

Birds New Zealand also displayed Owen Davey’s albatross poster produced for the inaugural World Albatross on 19 June this year

 
France’s Terres australes et antarctiques françaises TAAF marked WAD2024 with six albatross photographs by J. Abbou, M. Horlie, M. Parisot and R. Harivel.  This sunset photograph of three Wandering Albatrosses is one of them


School children mark World Albatross Day with a banner and albatross masks they made on Tristan da Cunha in the South Atlantic, photograph by Maria Swain


Identified as a juvenile Gibson’s Antipodean Albatross in Auckland Island's Carnley Harbour; one of five albatross photographs by Laura Findlay posted by the Royal Albatross Centre in New Zealand on 19 June 2024

Birds New Zealand also had this poster of a royal albatross taking off for World Abatross Day - that includes the theme for 2024

The last planned post in this short series marking World Albatross Day for 2024 will feature activities that took place in Japan in June and July.  If your celebration is missing, ACAP will be pleased to add it to its files.

John Cooper, Emeritus Information Officer, Agreement on the Conservation of Albatrosses and Petrels, 09 July 2024