The first returnee has been SIGHTED!

By The Royal Albatross Centre | Posted: Tuesday Sep 24, 2024

You all know what that means...it's BELL RINGING TIME!

The returnee is YRK (yellow red black) who was spotted flying around the headland on Tuesday evening by our guide Zach. She is a rather well-known bird as a former Royal Cam parent who raised Atawhai in 2020 and Lilibet in 2022, both with her mate OGK who sadly went missing in June 2022.

Having hatched in 1994, YRK is currently 30 years old and has successfully raised many chicks so far in her lifetime. Here's hoping she finds a new mate this season

To celebrate the arrival of YRK and to officially mark the start of a brand new albatross season, we hope you will all join us in the tradition of ringing the bells on Tuesday 24th of September at 1pm NZST

Photo: YRK in flight, Tue 17 Sept by Zach Barford