Boobies, Pelicans & Cormorants

Boobie Birds

Red-Footed Booby

RED FOOTED BOOBY
Found only on Half Moon Caye. The smallest of the boobies. In 1928, part of Half Moon Caye was reserved by the crown, as a bird sanctuary under the Crown Land Ordinance to protect the habitat of the Red-footed Booby. It is Belize’s oldest site designated for protection of wildlife.

The Half Moon Caye colony is made up of about 4,000 birds nests, amidst Orange-flowered Ziricote trees. Red-footed Boobies prefer Orange-flowered Ziricote trees for nest building and raising chicks. In return, the booby colony supports the forest’s stability by providing guano as fertilizer. This beautiful relationship will endure for many years to come if left relatively undisturbed.

On Half Moon Caye, the bird population is almost entirely made up of white-colored birds with black on the railing edge of their wings. The Red-footed Booby, unlike other seabirds, displays a variety of color morphs. Elsewhere they are dull brown. Look carefully, somewhere in the crowd you may see a white-tailed brown morph or a Red-footed Booby that is entirely brown. Despite plumage differences, all adults have the characteristic red feet.

The Red-footed Booby and Magnificent Frigatebird share a unique relationship, they have both reside together peacefully in nesting colonies on land. Conflicts occur over the open sea, when the Magnificent Frigatedbird chases and attacks the Red Footed Booby Bird to give up its food. The Red-footed Booby has learned to dive, catch its food and swollow it almost immediately before the Magnificent Frigatebird has a chance to steal it from them. This behavior of stealing food is called kleptoparasitism.
BELIZE HABITAT - Nests in trees and shrubs on islands; forages over open ocean, usually beyond sight of land.
Where can I find this bird in Belize?
Large nesting colony on Half Moon Caye, Lighthouse Reef. Reported occasionally on north cayes ad once at Belize City, usually following tropical storms.
INTERESTING BIRD FACTS

Like all boobies, the Red-footed Booby never carries its prey in its beak. Instead, it always swallows it before flying.
The Red-footed Booby comes in a confusing array of color morphs, ranging from individuals that are all white except for blackish on the wing, to individuals that are entirely dark brown. Some birds fail to fit neatly into any of the typical color morph categories, and many variations exist. Color morphs do not segregate reproductively or geographically; individuals representing several morphs breed in a single colony.
The oldest recorded Red-footed Booby was at least 22 years, 11 months old.

Half Moon Caye - Lighthouse Reef Atoll

Half Moon Caye

Boobie Bird

The Half Moon Caye Natural Monument (HMCNM) is located at the southeast corner of Lighthouse Reef Atoll. Lighthouse Reef Atoll is the furthest of Belize’s three atolls from the mainland, and one of only four such atolls in the Western Hemisphere. The atoll is an asymmetric rimmed platform, entirely surrounded by a fringing reef rising to the surface. Inside this fringing reef is a lagoon speckled with hundreds of coral patches which is known for its high density and diversity of corals and fishes.

Brown Booby Bird

Brown Booby

Brown Booby Bird - Found in and around the ocean areas of Belize, the Brown Booby is a dashing seabird—both in plumage, a natty brown-and-white (with bright yellow feet) and in flight style, which involves swift aerial maneuvers and deft dives. Like most seabirds that nest on islands, Brown Boobies are very vulnerable to introduced predators such as rats, mice, and cats.
BELIZE HABITAT - Nests on ground on offshore islands; forages at sea both outside and inside the reef; roosts in mangroves on small cayes.
Where can I find this bird in Belize?
Fairly common year round visitor offshore and among smaller cayes; sick or injured birds occasionally seen along mainland coast. No credible evidence of nesting.
INTERESTING BIRD FACTS

Like many seabirds, Brown Boobies have a serrated, comb-like toenail on their middle toe called a “preen-claw.” Boobies use it, along with their bill, to spread waterproofing oil from a gland in the tail throughout the feathers when preening.
The Brown Booby is the only ground-nesting booby that regularly builds a substantial nest.
Like all boobies and pelicans, the Brown Booby's feet are "totipalmate," having webbing connecting all four toes.
Male and female Brown Boobies generally look alike in plumage color, except along the Pacific coast of the Americas, where the males have light gray to white heads.
The oldest recorded Brown Booby was a 26-year-old male.

Masked Booby Bird

Masked Booby

Masked Booby Bird - A large seabird of tropical oceans, common to the ocean areas of Belize. It is mostly encountered at sea in the Gulf of Mexico & southern Atlantic states.
BELIZE HABITAT - Open ocean; healthy birds rarely found near shore.
Where can I find this bird in Belize?
Regular visitor; recorded February, May, August, and December, twice off Ambergris Caye, once off Belize City, and once near Glovers Reef.
Interesting Facts

The population of Masked Boobies breeding along the Pacific Coast of northern South America, including the Galapagos, was recently recognized as a separate species, the Nazca Booby. The Nazca Booby has an orange, not yellow, bill and is smaller with a significantly shorter, shallower bill. Whereas the Masked Booby usually nests on low, flat areas, the Nazca Booby uses cliffs and steep slopes.
Although the Masked Booby regularly lays two eggs, it never raises two young. The first egg is laid four to nine days before the second, and the older chick always ejects the second from the nest. The parents do not protect or feed the ejected chick, and it is quickly scavenged by a host of associated crabs, landbirds, and frigatebirds.
The oldest recorded Masked Booby was at least 25 years, 3 months old when it was found alive in the wild in the Pacific Oceania area.

PELICANS
Very large with immense bill, webbed feet & large pouch.

American White Pelican

American White Pelican - One of the largest birds in Belize, the American White Pelican is majestic in the air. The birds soar with incredible steadiness on broad, white-and-black wings. Their large heads and huge, heavy bills give them a prehistoric look. On the water they dip their pouched bills to scoop up fish, or tip-up like an oversized dabbling duck. Sometimes, groups of pelicans work together to herd fish into the shallows for easy feeding. Look for them on inland lakes in summer and near coastlines in winter.
BELIZE HABITAT - Estuaries, lagoons, shrimp farms; occasionally reservoirs, ocean.
Where can I find this bird in Belize?
Other than a sight record in 1902, not recorded until 1981. Numbers have increased steadily in past 20 years; now uncommon to locally common winter visitor in October to May, primarily north of Belize City (i.e. Crooked Tree and Nova Shrimp Farm in Belize), occasionally south along coast to north Toledo;once inland at Blue Creek Orange Walk, and once on Ambergris Caye.
Interesting Facts

American White Pelicans sometimes, large groups gather in wetlands. They coordinate their swimming to drive schooling fish toward the shallows. The pelicans can then easily scoop up these corralled fish from the water.
American White Pelicans must provide roughly 150 pounds of food to nourish a chick from its birth to the time it's ready to forage on its own.
Contrary to cartoon portrayals and common misconceptions, pelicans never carry food in their bill pouches. They use them to scoop up food but swallow their catch before flying off.
Pelicans are skillful food thieves. They steal from other pelicans trying to swallow large fish and are successful about one-third of the time. They also try to steal prey from Double-crested Cormorants that are bringing fish to the surface. In their dense nesting colonies, some birds even steal the food that a parent on an adjacent nest has disgorged for its young.
Pelican chicks can crawl by 1 to 2 weeks of age. By 3 weeks they can walk with their body off the ground and can swim as soon as they can get to water. Older chicks move up to running, then running with flapping their wings, and by the age of 9 to 10 weeks, they can fly.
They forage almost exclusively by day on their wintering grounds, but during breeding season, they commonly forage at night. Even though it’s hard to see, nighttime foraging tends to result in larger fish being caught than during the daytime.
American White Pelicans and Double-crested Cormorants are often found together. They sometimes forage together (though they mainly hunt different fish and at different depths). Cormorants even nest individually or in groups within pelican colonies.
Pelicans are big birds that can overheat when they’re out in the hot sun. They shed heat by facing away from the sun and fluttering their bill pouches—which contain many blood vessels to let body heat escape. Incubating parents may also stretch their wings wide to aid cooling.
American White Pelican embryos squawk before hatching to express discomfort if conditions get too hot or cold.
The oldest known American White Pelican at least 23 years, 6 months old.

Brown Pelican

Brown Pelican - The Brown Pelican is a comically elegant bird with an oversized bill, sinuous neck, and big, dark body. Squadrons glide above the surf along southern and western coasts, rising and falling in a graceful echo of the waves. They feed by plunge-diving from high up, using the force of impact to stun small fish before scooping them up. They are fairly common today—an excellent example of a species’ recovery from pesticide pollution that once placed them at the brink of extinction.
BELIZE HABITAT - Coastlines, inshore and offshore waters, offshore islands; less common in estuaries and shrimp farms, rarely inshore lagoons and ponds. Nests in colonies in mangroves.
Where can I find this bird in Belize?
Nests on several cayes. Common year round visitor on cayes and along mainland coast; occasionally inland, at Crooked Tree in Belize.
Interesting Facts

While the Brown Pelican is draining the water from its bill after a dive, gulls often try to steal the fish right out of its pouch—sometimes while perching on the pelican's head. Pelicans themselves are not above stealing fish, as they follow fishing boats and hang around piers for handouts.
Pelicans incubate their eggs with the skin of their feet, essentially standing on the eggs to keep them warm. In the mid-twentieth century the pesticide DDT caused pelicans to lay thinner eggs that cracked under the weight of incubating parents. After nearly disappearing from North America in the 1960s and 1970s, Brown Pelicans made a full comeback thanks to pesticide regulations.
The closely related Peruvian Pelican lives along the Pacific Coast of South America from southern Ecuador to Chile. It’s a little larger than a Brown Pelican, with fine white streaking on its underparts and a blue pouch in the breeding season. These two species are the only pelicans that plunge-dive for their food.
During a dive, the Brown Pelican tucks its head and rotates its body to the left. This maneuver is probably to cushion the trachea and esophagus—which are found on the right side of the neck—from the impact.
The oldest Brown Pelican on record was 43 years of age.

Cormorants

Medium sized body, gular pouch, long neck, webbed feet. Fly with outstretched slightly crinkled neck;
frequently glide for short periods in steady flight but do not soar.

Neotropic Cormorant

Neotropic Cormorant - A bird of the tropical waterways of Central and South America, the Neotropic Cormorant reaches the upper limits of its range in Texas and occasionally, the Great Plains. Although it superficially resembles North America's other freshwater cormorant, the Double-crested Cormorant, the Neotropic Cormorant stands apart in various aspects of behavior, as well as range.
BELIZE HABITAT - Lagoons, estuaries, shrimp farms, rice fields, coastline and inner cayes (especially in south). Nests in colonies in trees.
Where can I find this bird in Belize?
Common resident on mainland and lagoon side of Ambergris Caye; occasionally on other inner cayes; unrecorded from outer cayes. Large numbers congregate at Crooked Tree Belize.
INTERESTING BIRD FACTS

The Neotropic Cormorant is the only cormorant known to plunge-dive into water to catch fish. Unlike gannets and boobies, it does not dive from great heights, restricting its dives to less than a half-meter (1.75 feet) over the water. It is not particularly successful with this technique, catching a fish only once in every six to ten plunges.
In Mexico, Neotropic Cormorants reportedly often fish cooperatively, forming a line across swift-flowing streams and striking the surface with their wings, causing fish to flee, whereupon the cormorants dive and pursue them.

First Annual Bird Festival

Double-Crested Cormorant

Double Crested Cormorant

Double Crested Cormorant - The gangly Double-crested Cormorant is a prehistoric-looking, matte-black fishing bird with yellow-orange facial skin. Though they look like a combination of a goose and a loon, they are relatives of frigatebirds and boobies and are a common sight around fresh and salt water across North America—perhaps attracting the most attention when they stand on docks, rocky islands, and channel markers, their wings spread out to dry. These solid, heavy-boned birds are experts at diving to catch small fish.
BELIZE HABITAT - Mangroves, coastline and nearshore waters of cayes, harbors and coastal beaches along north mainland coast; occasionally shrimp farms. Nests in small colonies in mangroves and littoral forests.
Where can I find this bird in Belize?
Resident on small cayes west of Ambergris Caye and off Belize City; fairly common to common year round visitor on cayes south to Sapodillas and along mainland coast south to north of Toledo. Occasionally inland at Crooked Tree Belize and New River in Orange Walk. Numbers have increased significantly in past 20 years (noted as unusual as recently as 1982).
INTERESTING BIRD FACTS

From a distance, Double-crested Cormorants are dark birds with snaky necks, but up-close they’re quite colorful—with orange-yellow skin on their face and throat, striking aquamarine eyes that sparkle like jewels, and a mouth that is bright blue on the inside.
The double crest of the Double-crested Cormorant is only visible on adults during breeding season. The crests are white in cormorants from Alaska and black in other regions.
Cormorants often stand in the sun with their wings spread out to dry. They have less preen oil than other birds, so their feathers can get soaked rather than shedding water like a duck’s. Though this seems like a problem for a bird that spends its life in water, wet feathers probably make it easier for cormorants to hunt underwater with agility and speed.
Double-crested Cormorant nests often are exposed to direct sun. Adults shade the chicks and also bring them water, pouring it from their mouths into those of the chicks.
In breeding colonies where the nests are placed on the ground, young cormorants leave their nests and congregate into groups with other youngsters (creches). They return to their own nests to be fed.
Accumulated fecal matter below nests can kill the nest trees. When this happens, the cormorants may move to a new area or they may simply shift to nesting on the ground.
The Double-crested Cormorant makes a bulky nest of sticks and other materials. It frequently picks up junk, such as rope, deflated balloons, fishnet, and plastic debris to incorporate into the nest. Parts of dead birds are commonly used too.
Large pebbles are occasionally found in cormorant nests, and the cormorants treat them as eggs.

Anhinga

Anhinga - A dark body stealthily swims through a lake with only a snakelike head poking above the surface. What may sound like the Loch Ness monster is actually an Anhinga, swimming underwater and stabbing fish with its daggerlike bill. After every dip, it strikes a regal pose on the edges of shallow lakes and ponds, with its silvery wings outstretched and head held high to dry its waterlogged feathers. Once dry, it takes to the sky, soaring high on thermals stretched out like a cross.
BELIZE HABITAT - Forest-lined lagoons, swamp sluggish tree lined rivers, coastal estuaries, angrove forests, innermost mangrove cayes. Nests in trees.
Where can I find this bird in Belize?
Uncommon to fairly common resident on mainland; recorded frequently on mangrove cayes between Punta Ycacos and the Rio Grande Toledo, and occasionally on other inner cayes, including Ambergris.

INTERESTING BIRD FACTS

The Anhinga's distinctive shape earned it the nickname "water turkey" for its turkeylike tail, and "snake bird" for its long snakelike neck as it slithers through the water.
Unlike most waterbirds, the Anhinga doesn't have waterproof feathers. While that may seem like a disadvantage for their watery lifestyle, their wet feathers and dense bones help them slowly submerge their bodies under the water so they can slyly stalk fish.
The name Anhinga comes from the Tupi Indians in Brazil, meaning "devil bird" or "evil spirit of the woods."
The oldest recorded Anhinga was at least 12 years old.

Magnificent Frigatebird

Magnificent Frigatebird - Beachgoers delight in this large, black pterodactyl-like bird that soars effortlessly on tropical breezes with hardly a flap, using its deeply forked tail to steer. Watching a Magnificent Frigatebird float in the air truly is, as the name implies, magnificent. These master aerialists are also pirates of the sky, stealing food from other birds in midair. Males have a bright red pouch on the throat, which they inflate like a balloon to attract females. Females unlike most other seabirds look different than males with their white chest.
BELIZE HABITAT - Estuaries and other coastal areas, inshore and offshore waters, mangroves cayes. Nests in large colonies in mangroves.
Where can I find this bird in Belize?
Large nesting colony on Man-O-War Caye, smaller colony on Half Moon Caye; elsewhere, common year round visitor along mainland coast, all cayes, and at sea. Occasionally inland.
INTERESTING BIRD FACTS

Frigatebirds are the only seabirds in which the male and female look strikingly different. Females may not have the males' bright red pouch, but they are bigger than males.
The breeding period of the Magnificent Frigatebird is exceptionally long. Males and females incubate the eggs for around 56 days, and once hatched, chicks don't leave the nest until they are about 167 days old. Even after they leave the nest, females continue to feed them until they are one year old.
The Magnificent Frigatebird spends most of its life flying effortlessly over the ocean. It rarely lands on the water even though it has webbed feet, because unlike other seabirds it lacks waterproof feathers.
The frigatebird is sometimes called the "man-o-war bird" because it harasses other birds until they regurgitate recently captured food, which the frigatebird snatches in midair.
Learning how to chase other birds and steal meals takes practice. Young frigatebirds hold sticks in their mouths and chase each other. When one of them drops the stick, the other dives below to retrieve it.
The oldest known Magnificent Frigatebird was at least 19 years, 9 months.