| Summary: | Monitoring ocean surface winds is essential for understanding ocean and atmosphere interactions and weather forecasts. However, wind measured by satellite scatterometers and buoys are spatially and temporally coarse, particularly in coastal areas. We deployed small global positioning system units on soaring seabirds to record their tracks. Seabirds were accelerated by tail winds or slowed down by head winds during flight, so their flight speed changed in relation to wind speed and direction. Taking advantage of these changes in flight speed, we reliably estimated wind speed and direction experienced by the seabirds. The wind observed by soaring seabird’s tracks complemented the conventional observation gaps in terms of both time and space, suggesting the possibility of using soaring seabirds as a living anemometer. streaked_shearwater_no1time series of latitude and longitudestreaked_shearwater_no2time series of latitude and longitudestreaked_shearwater_no3time series of latitude and longitudestreaked_shearwater_no4time series of latitude and longitudestreaked_shearwater_no5time series of latitude and longitudestreaked_shearwater_no6time series of latitude and longitudestreaked_shearwater_no7time series of latitude and longitudestreaked_shearwater_no11time series of latitude and longitudestreaked_shearwater_no12time series of latitude and longitudestreaked_shearwater_no13time series of latitude and longitudestreaked_shearwater_no14time series of latitude and longitudestreaked_shearwater_no15time series of latitude and longitudestreaked_shearwater_no16time series of latitude and longitudeLaysan_albatross_no1time series of latitude and longitudeLaysan_albatross_no2time series of latitude and longitudewandering_albatross_no1time series of latitude and longitudewandering_albatross_no2time series of latitude and longitudewandering_albatross_no3time series of latitude and longitudewandering_albatross_no4time series of latitude and longitude
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