Indian yellow-nosed albatross  (Thalassarche carteri)

Description

Part of the mollymawk family, the Indian yellow-nosed albatross is one of the smallest albatross species, compensating for its relatively diminutive proportions with excellent in-flight agility. A black and white bird, it has just one blaze of colour - a yellow stripe running down the top of the bill, blending into red at the tip – to which it owes its name. The back, upperwings and tail are dark grey, fading to very pale grey across the head and neck, and white on the underwings and rump. The underwings are tipped with black and have a narrow margin of black at the leading edge (2). The legs are pale bluish pink (3). The sexes are alike, but juveniles have a white head and black bill (2).

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