Magnificent frigatebird

The magnificent frigatebird is Saba’s largest bird, easily distinguished by its pointed wings and long forked tail, which it twists and turns in order to steer. With an almost 2.5 m/8-foot wingspan, these birds can easily be seen soaring around the coast looking for a meal. They use their long, hooked bills like tweezers to pluck fish, squid, and crustaceans from the water’s surface without wetting their feathers, which, unlike other seabirds, lack waterproofing oils. 

Taking a page from Saba’s history, they’re big fans of piracy, plundering and stealing fish from other ocean-faring birds. A favorite tactic is to chase smaller birds and harass them mid-air in an attempt to get them to drop any fish that they’ve caught. If they’re successful, magnificent frigatebirds will plummet toward the falling fish, catching it before it hits the water’s surface. It’s a dramatic, albeit confrontational, way to earn dinner, and the behavior earned them the nickname “man-of-wars” among Saba’s sailors.

During their breeding season, they congregate in trees near the water and build sizable nests in large, communal groups. Their penchant for thieving even shows itself in nest building — no branch is safe. 

Males develop a large, bright-red throat pouch that can be inflated to an impressive size, an unusual feature that helps them attract females. Paring results in a single egg, which is incubated for over two months — an especially long period for birds of their size. By the time their young leave the nest more than six months later, the parents are ready to take a well-deserved, year-long break, only breeding biennially.

Header image by @zahnerphoto (CC-BY-NC).