The Return Of The Short-Tailed Albatross

The albatross, a bird made famous from its role in the poem "Rime of the Ancient Mariner" just might be making a comeback. Once thought to be extinct, and until last year only thought to inhabit a small area of Japan, the short-tailed albatross has been spotted on several Hawaiian islands.

Scientists have concluded that this isn't a new community of short-tailed albatrosses, but rather an existing one that has managed to breed well and cause somewhat of a population surge in the last few years. This is a positive sign to scientists, and conservationists, who think this could be the begining of the return of this rare bird.

The short-tailed albatross once numbered in the millions, making in one of the most prominent alabtross species. But turn of the century feather hunting nearly decimated the species, and it was thought to be extinct by the late 1940s.

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