A bunch of shy albatrosses (yep, that’s their official name) have scored themselves an early Valentine‘s present, with the arrival of the first fluffy, adorable chicks of 2018.
These beaut birds, which only breed on three islands off the coast of Tasmania, have been struggling to raise their numbers in recent years, thanks to (what else) climate change.
After recognising that the lovely birdos were having trouble finding enough material to build their nests in 2017, conservation scientists and funding partners from the Tas and Australian Governments, WWF Australia, CSIRO Marine Climate Impact and the Tasmanian Albatross Fund airlifted in more than a hundred custom-built artificial nests to Albatross Island in the Bass Strait.
Now we’ve got the fruits of their labour: nests pimped out with mud and foliage, and a whole bunch of new chicks.
But enough preamble. Cop a look at the adorable little birdlings below:
HELO FREND
SQUARK
FLEPPE
I ASKED FOR A GREEN SMOOTHIE
WHAT ARE YOU DOING
aaaaaAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH
When the chicks are all grown up and ready to leave the island, some will have tiny li’l trackers attached to them, so scientists can monitor their movements, and try to figure out how to keep this beautiful species out of the danger zone and living their sea-loving lives.
