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Booby Facts

Booby Facts
Booby is a seabird that belongs to the family Sulidae. There are 6 species of booby that can be found along the coasts of Central and South America and on the tropical islands in the Pacific Ocean. Booby is widespread and numerous in all parts of its range, except on the Galapagos islands where population of booby is slightly reduced due to introduction of predators, development of tourism, habitat destruction and pollution of the water.
Interesting Booby Facts:
Booby can reach 25 to 36 inches in length and 2 to 3.9 pounds of weight. Females are slightly larger than males.
Booby is covered with white, brown, black and grey feathers. Head and neck can be uniformly colored or covered with stripes. Dorsal side of the body and wings are dark-colored in most species, while bottom side of the body is often light-colored or pure white.
Booby has long bill, streamlined body, long, pointed wings and large webbed feet. Females have shorter tails than males.
Booby is strong and agile flyer. It usually flies at speed of 24 miles per hour.
Due to clumsy appearance on the solid ground, bobby was labeled as "stupid" by the first European settlers. Its name is derived from Spanish word "bobo" which means "stupid".
Booby is active during the day (diurnal). It sleeps on the coast during the night.
Booby is a carnivore. Its diet is based on various types of sea invertebrates (such as squid) and small fish (anchovies, sardines and mackerel).
Booby is excellent diver. It often catches fish by plunging into the water from the height of 80 feet, at the speed of 60 miles per hour. Booby can also catch fish while it rests on the surface of the water.
Booby lives in the groups (flocks) of up to 200 birds. Males produce whistling sounds, while females communicate via hoarse grunting noise.
Natural enemies of booby are owls and large birds of prey.
Males of blue-footed booby have conspicuous blue-colored feet, which they use to seduce females during the breeding season. Males with the bluest feet have the greatest chance to find a mate.
Boobies nest on the rocky coasts and islands during the night. They form monogamous pairs that mate for a lifetime and nest in the colonies of few hundred birds.
Female lays 1 to 3 eggs. Boobies use their large feet to cover eggs and keep them warm during the incubation period which lasts 41 days.
Both parents take part in the incubation of eggs and feeding of the chicks until they reach the age of 2 months and become ready for the independent life. Young boobies reach sexual maturity at the age of 2 to 3 years.
Booby can survive 12 to 17 years in the wild.


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