Rising Tide Images
Bill Fencing
A pair of Laysan albatross reestablishes their monogamous bond at the beginning of breeding season. After gliding solitary over the Pacific Ocean for most of the year, they return to the nesting grounds and perform elaborate recognition and courtship behaviors that include bumping their bills together, commonly referred to as “billing” or the “kiss of the albatross.” Besides the complex repertoire of tactile and visual displays, there may be olfactory recognition associated with the close contact. Laysan albatross, mōlī (Phoebastria immutabilis).
Bill Fencing
A pair of Laysan albatross reestablishes their monogamous bond at the beginning of breeding season. After gliding solitary over the Pacific Ocean for most of the year, they return to the nesting grounds and perform elaborate recognition and courtship behaviors that include bumping their bills together, commonly referred to as “billing” or the “kiss of the albatross.” Besides the complex repertoire of tactile and visual displays, there may be olfactory recognition associated with the close contact. Laysan albatross, mōlī (Phoebastria immutabilis).