'Wisdom' Speaks

Perhaps you've heard about the albatross--a sea bird with the longest wingspan of any bird on the planet today.  How long, you ask?  Try taller by feet than any basketball player.  To be precise, up to 11 feet across.

(Photo : USGS) World's oldest-known bird hatches another chick.

Wisdom is not only an albatross, but she is a mother at age 62.  And not for the first time, for Wisdom has hatched and raised between 30 and 35 chicks.  I can only imagine trying to complete her family tree with generations of offspring and their offspring and their offspring. 

When I saw this wonderful story, the teacher in me saw the wisdom of this animal.  Though the world keeps changing, the oceans rise, the winds blow, the ships cross the ocean, Wisdom keeps on her path.  In her life-time Wisdom has flown 2-3 million miles!  I suppose the message is simple and yet we need it.  Studying STEM can be discouraging and hard, but the payoff is found in persistence! 

If Wisdom has inspired you to know more, check out these resources:  Nature World News,  USFWS Pacific and Midway Atoll National Wildlife Refuge.