Skuas are related to gulls, waders, auks, and skimmers. In the three smaller species, all nesting exclusively in the Holarctic, breeding adults have the two central tail feathers obviously elongated, and at least some adults have white on the underparts and pale yellow on the neck.

2023年4月3日 · A total of 71 brown skua (Catharacta antarctica) and 3 south polar skua (C. maccormicki) nests were counted. Two of the seven variables (terrain slope and vegetation cover) accounted for 57.5% ± 14.1% of the models’ variability; sun radiation incidence, and wind shielding were of secondary importance.

Great skuas are an aggressive predatory seabird. Well known for chasing and intimidating other birds like gannets and gulls to steal their food. Great skuas will also hunt for small birds, eggs and small mammals like rodents and rabbits. They display their most aggressive behaviour when defending their nesting colonies.

In this article, we’ll have a closer look into the life cycle of the Long-Tailed Skua, from nest building to fledging, and their breeding habits and the challenges they face in their Arctic homes.

ABSTRACT.-Although South Polar Skuas (Catharacta maccormicki) are important predators of Adelie Penguin (Pygoscelis adeliae) eggs and chicks, skuas experience both reproductive costs and benefits when nesting near Adelie Penguins. We present a conceptual model to show that skua nest placement is based on two mechanisms: nest safety and access ...

We investigated nest-site selection of sympatrically breeding skuas (Catharacta spp.) and Kelp Gulls (Larus dominicanus) in the Antarctic Peninsula. We evaluated habitat preferences of nesting skuas and gulls in a patchy landscape by counting the numbers of nests in …

The arctic skua spends most of its life out at sea only coming to land to breed. The birds create a close colony when breeding and they nest on heathland and moorlands of the islands in the far north of Scotland, the Shetland and Orkney Islands and the arctic circle.

2024年6月23日 · Skuas construct simple nests on the ground or among rocks and vegetation. Nests are often shallow depressions lined with grass, moss, or other available materials.

At the inland colony of Svarthamaren, Dronning Maud Land, the south polar skua feeds almost exclusively on Antarctic petrel (Thalassoica antarctica) eggs and chicks (Brooke et al., 1999;...

We present a conceptual model to show that skua nest placement is based on two mechanisms: nest safety and access to penguins. Skua nests close to subcolonies of breeding penguins are likely to suffer greater egg loss due to egg trampling by penguins and predation by other skuas.