quote:

John Roach
for National Geographic News
January 13, 2005

It is well known that albatrosses take an 18-month break between mating seasons. Less clear has been where the globe-trotting birds go during their year-and-a-half respite. That is until now.

A new study reveals that some albatrosses fly around the world once. Others twice. Still others—call them relative homebodies—stick closer to their breeding grounds in the southern reaches of the Atlantic Ocean.
...
The mating habits and habitats of breeding albatrosses have been well documented, since the seabirds tend to breed in a few well-studied areas. However, many species breed for only a few months every two years and spend the rest of their time at sea.
...
The gray-headed albatross tracking results reveal that the birds reliably stick to one of three patterns: Some seabirds stayed close to their breeding grounds in the southern reaches of the Atlantic Ocean; others migrated to a specific region of the Indian Ocean; and a third group made at least one trip around the world in as little as 46 days.