Ngā Taonga Sound Archives: The Dunedin albatross colony

Photo: Ngā Taonga Sound & Vision

Last month the bells rang out in Dunedin’s churches to mark the return of the first royal albatross to the colony at Taiaroa Head on the Otago Peninsula.

The birds return from the sea every two years to breed,  and in today’s visit to the sound archives of Ngā Taonga Sound & Vision with Sarah Johnston we hear recordings about the history of the world’s only mainland albatross colony.

Sue Smyth with “Sproggins” in 1938. Courtesy The Royal Albatross Centre, Taiaroa Head.

Adult northern albatross with chick on Taiaroa Head. Photograph by Alan Wright, courtesy Department of Conservation.

Adult male albatross displaying on Taiaroa Head. Photograph by Alan Wright, courtesy Department of Conservation.