What does the Christmas Island frigatebird eat?
What does the Christmas Island frigatebird eat?
Despite being a poor swimmer and lacking waterproof feathers, the Christmas Island frigatebird disperses widely offshore, snatching its prey directly from the ocean surface (when it doesn’t steal from other birds) and using its long hooked-bill to feed on planktonic crustaceans, fish and squid.
Why is the frigatebird endangered?
The Christmas Island Frigatebird Fregata andrewsi is one of the most endangered seabirds in the world. The reasons for its population decline are unknown, but recommended protection measures and management actions focus on the species’ breeding site.
Where does the Christmas frigatebird live?
The Christmas Island Frigatebird is the rarest endemic seabird on Christmas Island, Australia. It belongs to a family of five birds, the Fregatidae, which have the largest wingspan to body weight ratio of any bird.
Are frigate birds endangered?
Scientists believe there are between 3,600 and 7,200 Christmas frigatebirds, deeming them critically endangered. There are likely several hundred thousand lesser frigatebirds, though their population is decreasing as well with a conservation status of least concern.
What kind of bird is a Christmas Island frigatebird?
Christmas Island frigatebirds are large black sea birds with deeply forked tails and long hooked bills. Both sexes share a distinct white belly patch and pale bars on the upperwing. Females are larger than their male counterparts, with weights of 1550 g and 1400 g respectively. Males have a red gular pouch and the bill is dark grey.
Where does a Christmas frigatebird roost in Indonesia?
Pulau Rambut Wildlife Reserve (one of the island in Jakarta Bay) is a roosting site for Christmas Island and Lesser Frigatebirds (Wardhani 2011). When not breeding the species ranges widely across the seas of South-East Asia to Indochina and south to northern Australia (Stokes 1988, Hennicke et al. 2015).
How many Christmas frigatebirds are there in Australia?
Maintain a quarantine barrier between Christmas Island and other lands to minimise the risks of new avian diseases establishing (Hill and Dunn 2004). This species is endemic as a breeding species to Christmas Island (to Australia) , Indian Ocean. In 2003 it was estimated that there were 1,171 (± 58) breeding pairs.
How many species of frigatebirds are there in the world?
Three species (the Magnificent, Great and Lesser Frigatebirds) are widespread in tropical oceans. In an unusual biogeographic contrast the Christmas Island and the Ascension Island Frigatebirds each occur on only one island, with the additional oddity that the Christmas Island Frigatebird shares the island with Great and Lesser Frigatebirds.