[Fregata magnificens]
I was in awe when I first saw these giant seabirds circling high above me. Sinister and angular, they looked almost like Pterodactyls!
Common in the Carribean and Florida as well as along the Pacific coast from Mexico to Ecuador. Pictured left is a female, with distinctive white chest. Males are all black, and, during mating season have a bright red throat pouch that inflates. Also known as a Man O'War, Magnificent Frigatebirds are aerial pirates, often chasing down and attacking smaller seabirds in midair to steal their catch of fish!
These guys are enormous, 40 inches long with a 90 inch wingspan! Easily identified by their slow, ominous circling, angular wings, hooked but almost gull-like beak, and split tails.
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