Storm hurls southern birds to Wellington TWO years after lost emperor penguin Happy Feet was found way north of its Antarctic home, a southerly storm has carried five white-capped albatrosses out of their comfort zone to the New Zealand capital. One was found battered and bruised on the runway at Wellington Airport, though fortunately the 140km/h winds meant the runway was closed to aircraft that might have damaged it further. Wellington Zoo spokeswoman Kate Baker says the white-capped albatross breeds largely in islands south of New Zealand, such as the Auckland Islands. "They've come in with ripped-up feet, probably from crash-landing, and generally a bit bashed around from being in the wind," she told AAP. "We do occasionally get them but we've never had them in numbers this big before," she said. The species is classified as near-threatened, with total numbers of about 150,000. The albatrosses, all thought to be adults, were given fluids and put in a warm enclosure. They will be examined more thoroughly later on Friday. Eventually they will go into the zoo's saltwater pool and once they are ready they will be released. A number of other birds have been found out of their range following the storm, including a giant petrel which is comparable in size to the albatrosses. A taxi driver found the petrel near Wellington Airport, put it in the boot of his taxi and brought it to us. It's quite stressed," Ms Baker said. Two years ago, the zoo nursed emperor penguin Happy Feet back to health after he was found on the Kapiti Coast, way north of his Southern Ocean habitat. He was released into the Southern Ocean once healthy but a tracker placed on his leg went silent, meaning his fate was unknown.