Magnificent Frigatebird
Male Prachtfregattvogel ( Fregata magnificens ) with inflated throat pouch
The Prachtfregattvogel ( Fregata magnificens ) is a species of the order Pelecaniformes ( Pelecaniformes ).
In Europe, the Prachtfregattvogel is a very rare exception guest who might be drifted by Hurricane foothills to the European coasts. Observations are, among others, from the United Kingdom in 1998 and Denmark in 1968.
Features
The Prachtfregattvogel is long up to 102 cm, has a wingspan of 217-229 cm and a weight of 1.1 to 1.6 kg. He has a long, deeply forked tail. The narrow and long, wide-open and angled wings have the shape of an open "W" s The plumage is mainly glossy black, only the female has a white band at the bottom. The plumage of the young bird is at the top and the bottom white, brown on top with black sand brown dashes. The adult plumage is reached only after four to six years. The male has a red throat pouch to it like a balloon inflates during courtship. The legs are short stay and the four toes are connected by small webbed and bear strong claws. With the weak legs, he can not go, but to hold them by branches. Its plumage is a little water -repellent, so he almost never swims. He's flying acrobatic aerial maneuvers and can spend hours sailing. It can be up to 26 years old.
Occurrence
The Prachtfregattvogel lives on the American Pacific coast of Baja California to Ecuador, including the Galapagos Islands and along the Atlantic coast from Florida to southern Brazil. There are in the West Palaearctic relict populations which among other things on the Cape Verde Islands. The population is estimated at only ten individuals.
The population on the Galapagos Islands may be a distinct species, as a study by scientists at the Smithsonian Institution and University of Missouri -St. Louis suggests. The Prachfregattvögel on the Galapagos have lived in isolation for several 100,000 years and are genetically and morphologically so different from their relatives outside the Galapagos that separate conservation efforts are needed. Given these results, the current inventory on the Galapagos of about 1000 breeding pairs appears to be relatively low.
Reproduction
During mating, the male sitting on branches and shows with loud cries the bloated throat pouch. Both partners share on nesting and hatching and boy feeding. The nest is on mangrove trees, shrubs and cacti, rare on the ground. A single white egg is 40 - incubated for 50 days. After five to six months, the young bird is fully fledged, but still fed for an additional five to seven months.
Food
The Prachtfregattvogel feeds on fish and squid, which it catches in flight at the water surface. He attacks other seabirds in flight until they disgorge their catch just made and still catches in flight the dropped loot. On land he captures young turtles and eggs and chicks.