South Polar Skua

Stercorarius maccormicki

Salteador del Polo Sur,
Pßgalo Antßrtico

A large, dark brown gull with a thick-necked appearance. It has white patches at the base of the primary feathers. Length: 50-55 cm.; weight: 900-1,600 g. Breeds on the coast of Antarctica and passes through the western Atlantic en route to wintering grounds off North America. Rare at sea off Puerto Rico. The larger Great Skua (Stercorarius skua) has also been reported in the West Indies.

TAXONOMY: CHARADRIIFORMES; LARIDAE; Stercorariinae. Formerly placed in the genus Catharacta.

References

Andersson, M. 1999. Phylogeny, behaviour, plumage evolution and neoteny in skuas Stercoraridae. J Avian Biol. 30:205-215.  

del Hoyo, J., A. Elliott, and J. Sargatal, eds. 1996. Handbook of Birds of the World, Vol. 3. Hoatzin to Auks. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona.

Grant, P.J. 1986. Gulls: a guide to identification. Buteo, Vermillion, SD.

Hagelin, J. C., and G. D. Miller. 1997. Nest-site selection in South Polar Skuas: balancing nest safety and access to resources. Auk 114:638-645.

Harrison, P. 1983. Seabirds: an identification guide. Houghton Mifflin, Boston.

Harrison, P. 1987. A field guide to seabirds of the world. Stephen Greene Press, Lexington, MA.

Raffaele, H.A. 1989. A guide to the birds of Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. Princeton.

Raffaele, H.A. 1989. Una guía a las aves de Puerto Rico y las Islas Vírgenes. Publishing Resources, Inc., Santurce, PR.

Raffaele, H.A., J.W. Wiley, O.H. Garrido, A.R. Keith, and J.I. Raffaele. 1998. Guide to the birds of the West Indies. Princeton.

Saether, B., S. Engen, and E. Matthysen. 2002. Demographic characteristics and population dynamical patterns of solitary birds. Science 295:2070-2073.

South Polar Skua, Spanish text

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