Beaches are not only a great place to relax and soak up the sun, but they are also home to a variety of incredible sea birds. Seabirds are a type of marine bird that have adapted to life in marine environments and spend their days around the shoreline or further out in the open sky over the ocean.
These birds are fascinating to watch as they soar through the sky, dive into the water, and hunt for fish. In this article, we will explore 15 incredible types of sea birds to watch for at the beach.
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From the blue-footed booby to the Atlantic puffin, we will discover where to find them and what makes them unique. So, grab your binoculars and let’s get started!
15 Incredible Types Of Sea Birds To Watch For At The Beach
Booby
Boobies are a type of seabird that belong to the genus Sula, part of the family Sulidae. They are closely related to gannets, which were formerly included in Sula.
The English name “booby” was possibly based on the Spanish slang term bobo, meaning “stupid”, as these tame birds had a habit of landing on board sailing ships, where they were easily captured and eaten.
Boobies are carnivorous birds that eat anchovies, mackerel, sardines, and squid. They are excellent fliers and divers, and can live up to 17 years in the wild.
Boobies are tropical creatures, and the blue-footed booby lives in Central and South America, specifically on the western coasts. The brown booby’s habitat includes the Gulf of Mexico, the Caribbean, and other tropical regions.
Boobies are known for their spectacular dives from high in the air to catch fish, and their tameness and lack of fear of humans.
Albatross
Albatrosses are a family of large seabirds that belong to the biological family Diomedeidae, part of the order Procellariiformes. They are known for their impressive wingspans, which can reach up to 11 feet, making them the bird with the longest wingspan.
Albatrosses are found in the Southern Ocean and the North Pacific, and they are absent from the North Atlantic, although fossil remains show they once occurred there and occasional vagrants are found. They are among the largest seabirds, and the “great albatrosses,” the wandering and royal albatrosses, have the widest wingspans of any living bird.
Albatrosses use their wings to ride the ocean winds and sometimes to glide for hours without rest or even a flap of their wings. They also float on the sea’s surface, though the position makes them vulnerable to aquatic predators.
Albatrosses feed primarily on squid or schooling fish, but are familiar to mariners because they sometimes follow ships in hopes of dining on handouts or garbage.
Albatrosses have a special place in maritime lore and superstition, most memorably evoked in Samuel Taylor Coleridge’s The Rime of the Ancient Mariner.
Skua
Skuas are a group of predatory seabirds that belong to the family Stercorariidae, which is the only family in the genus Stercorarius. They are medium to large birds, typically with grey or brown plumage, often with white markings on the wings.
Skuas range in size from the long-tailed skua, which weighs 310 grams (0.68 pounds), to the brown skua, which weighs 1.63 kg (3.6 lb). They have longish bills with a hooked tip, and webbed feet with sharp claws.
Skuas are strong, acrobatic fliers and are generally aggressive in disposition. They are known for their practice of “divebombing” potential predators approaching their nests, usually targeting the heads of intruders.
Skuas are related to gulls, waders, auks, and skimmers. There are seven species of skuas, and the three smaller species, the Arctic skua, the long-tailed skua, and the pomarine skua, are called jaegers.
Skuas are found in open ocean habitats, except during the breeding season, when they nest mainly on treeless northern islands with low vegetation, close to colonies of other seabirds.
Brown Pelican
The brown pelican (Pelecanus occidentalis) is a large seabird that belongs to the pelican family, Pelecanidae. It is one of three species found in the Americas and one of two that feed by diving into water.
Brown pelicans are found on the Atlantic Coast from New Jersey to the mouth of the Amazon River, and along the Pacific Coast from British Columbia to northern Chile, including the Galapagos Islands. They are huge, stocky seabirds with thin necks and very long bills with a stretchy throat pouch used for capturing fish.
Their wings are very long and broad and are often noticeably bowed when the birds are gliding. Brown pelicans are comically elegant birds with an oversized bill, sinuous neck, and big, dark body. They are unmistakable birds of coastal waters and are often seen flying low over the waves in single file, flapping and gliding in unison.
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Brown pelicans are strictly marine species, primarily inhabiting marine subtidal, warm waters. They are the national bird of Saint Martin, Barbados, Saint Kitts and Nevis, and the Turks and Caicos Islands, and the official state bird of Louisiana, appearing on the flag, seal, or coat of arms of each.
Brown pelicans have been rated as a species of least concern by the International Union for Conservation of Nature.
Frigatebird
Frigatebirds are a family of seabirds called Fregatidae, which are found across all tropical and subtropical oceans. The five extant species are classified in a single genus, Fregata.
All frigatebirds have predominantly black plumage, long, deeply forked tails, and long hooked bills. Females have white underbellies, and males have a distinctive red gular pouch, which they inflate during the breeding season to attract females.
Frigatebirds are also known as “frigate bird,” “frigate-bird,” “frigate,” and “frigate-petrel”. The gular sac is perhaps the most striking frigatebird feature. These can only deflate slowly, so males that are disturbed will fly off with pouches distended for some time.
Frigatebirds remain in the air and do not settle on the ocean. They produce very little oil from their uropygial glands, so their feathers would become sodden if they settled on the surface.
In addition, with their long wings relative to body size, they would have great difficulty taking off again. Magnificent frigatebirds are the most widespread species, found in the tropical Atlantic, breeding on islands in the Caribbean and off the coasts of Central and South America. They are large seabirds with long, angular wings, and a deeply forked tail that is often held closed in a point.
The bill is long and sturdy with a prominently hooked tip. Magnificent frigatebirds are larger than a brown pelican but smaller than an American white pelican, measuring 35.0-44.9 in (89-114 cm) in length and weighing 35.3-67.0 oz (1000-1900 g). They are known for their ability to soar effortlessly over the ocean and rarely land on the water, even though they have webbed feet.
Magnificent frigatebirds 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, while females look different than males with their white chest.
Common Murre
The common murre, also known as the common guillemot, is a large auk that has a circumpolar distribution, occurring in low-Arctic and boreal waters in the North Atlantic and North Pacific. Here are some interesting facts about the common murre:
– The common murre is 38–46 cm (15–18 in) in length with a 61–73 cm (24–29 in) wingspan.
– Male and female are indistinguishable in the field and weight ranges between 945 g (2 lb 1+1⁄2 oz) in the south of their range to 1,044 g (2 lb 5 oz) in the north.
– In breeding plumage, the nominate subspecies (U. a. aalge) is black on the head, back and wings, and has white underparts.
– The common murre is a pursuit-diver that forages for food by swimming underwater using its wings for propulsion.
– Dives usually last less than one minute, but the bird swims underwater for distances of over 30 m (100 ft) on a regular basis.
– Diving depths up to 180 m (590 ft) have been recorded and birds can remain underwater for a couple of minutes.
– The common murre nests in densely packed colonies (known as “loomeries”), with up to twenty pairs occupying one square metre at peak season.
– Common murres are dapper, black-and-white seabirds that nest in raucous throngs on crowded sea cliffs.
– They are often described as “flying penguins,” and they have a similar appearance to penguins, but they are not closely related.
– Common murres are still abundant, but populations are known to have declined in many areas, and they are vulnerable to the effects of pollution and oil spills.
– They are found in large bays and colonies on sea cliffs, favoring cool ocean waters, both offshore and rather near the coast, generally over the continental shelf.
– Common murres forage while swimming underwater and may dive to more than 150 feet below the surface when foraging.
– They lay spectacular eggs that are distinctive in color, with variations ranging from white to blue-green.
– Common murres are about 15 to 18 inches long, with short necks and long, pointed wings.
Overall, the common murre is a fascinating seabird that is well adapted to life in the ocean and has unique characteristics that make it stand out among other seabirds.
Seagull
Seagulls, or colloquially known as gulls, are seabirds of the family Laridae in the suborder Lari. They are most closely related to the terns and skimmers and only distantly related to auks, and even more distantly to waders.
There are more than 50 documented species of seagulls found all over the world. The most common species are the European herring gull and the American herring gull, but there’s plenty of diversity across the entire family.
Seagulls are highly versatile and adaptable birds, and they are known for their scavenging behavior and their ability to drink both freshwater and saltwater. They are often found near the coast, but some species can be found inland.
Seagulls are tenacious and clever foragers, and they have a major impact on where they live, following their food. The classification of seagulls has been debated heavily in the past century, and recent research has called for changes in the classification of gulls.
In common usage, members of various gull species are often referred to as seagulls or sea gulls, but this is a layperson’s term that is not used by most ornithologists and biologists.
Pelican
Pelicans are a genus of large water birds that make up the family Pelecanidae. Here are some interesting facts about pelicans:
– Pelicans are characterized by a long beak and a large throat pouch used for catching prey and draining water from the scooped-up contents before swallowing.
– They have predominantly pale plumage, except for the brown and Peruvian pelicans.
– The bills, pouches, and bare facial skin of all pelicans become brightly coloured before the breeding season.
– Pelicans are very large birds with very long bills characterised by a downcurved hook at the end of the upper mandible, and the attachment of a huge gular pouch to the lower.
– The slender rami of the lower bill and the flexible tongue muscles form the pouch into a basket for catching fish, and sometimes rainwater, though to not hinder the swallowing of large fish, the tongue itself is tiny.
– They have a long neck and short stout legs with large, fully webbed feet.
– The great white pelican is the national bird of Romania, and the brown pelican is the state bird of Louisiana.
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Cormorant
Cormorants are a family of aquatic birds that belong to the family Phalacrocoracidae, which includes approximately 40 species commonly known as cormorants and shags. Here are some interesting facts about cormorants:
– Cormorants nest in colonies around the shore, on trees, islets, or cliffs.
– They are coastal rather than oceanic birds, and some have colonized inland waters.
– The original ancestor of cormorants seems to have been a freshwater bird.
– Cormorants range around the world, except for the central Pacific islands.
– “Cormorant” is a contraction derived either directly from Latin corvus marinus, “sea raven”, or through Brythonic Celtic.
– Cormorants and shags are medium-to-large seabirds.
– They range in size from the pygmy cormorant, at as little as 45 cm (18 in) and 340 g (12 oz), to the flightless cormorant, at a maximum size of 100 cm (39 in) and 5 kg (11 lb).
– Double-crested cormorants are large waterbirds with small heads on long, kinked necks.
– They have thin, strongly hooked bills, roughly the length of the head, and their heavy bodies sit low in the water.
– Double-crested cormorants are larger than the Neotropic cormorant, but smaller than the great cormorant.
– They are prehistoric-looking, matte-black fishing birds with yellow-orange facial skin.
– Cormorants have an almost primitive appearance with their long necks making them appear reptilian.
– Cormorants are very adaptable and may be found in almost any aquatic habitat, from rocky northern coasts to mangrove swamps to large reservoirs to small inland ponds.
– They build their nests mostly on trees near or over water, on sea cliffs, or on the ground on islands.
– Cormorants are known for their excellent fishing skills and are often seen diving into the water to catch fish.
– Double-crested cormorants are often considered a foe to fishermen because they can consume large amounts of fish.
Overall, cormorants are fascinating birds that have adapted to life in aquatic environments and have unique characteristics that make them stand out among other seabirds.
Atlantic Puffin
The Atlantic puffin, also known as the common puffin, is a species of seabird in the auk family. It is the only puffin native to the Atlantic Ocean, with two related species, the tufted puffin and the horned puffin, found in the northeastern Pacific.
The Atlantic puffin breeds in Russia, Iceland, Ireland, Norway, Greenland, Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, and the Faroe Islands, and as far south as Maine in the west and France in the east.
More than 90% of the global population is found in Europe, and colonies in Iceland alone are home to 60% of the world’s Atlantic puffins. Atlantic puffins lead solitary existences when out at sea, and this part of their lives has been little studied, as the task of finding even one is difficult.
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Here are some interesting facts about the Atlantic puffin:
– The Atlantic puffin is a sharply dressed black-and-white seabird with a huge, multicolored bill, often called the clown of the sea.
– It is a medium-sized, stout seabird with a short neck, big head, and large triangular bill.
– The Atlantic puffin stands in an upright position on land and floats high in the water.
– The bill grows larger and acquires more grooves as the bird ages.
– Puffins have fairly short, straight wings and fly with constant, fast wingbeats.
– The Atlantic puffin is larger than a Dovekie, but smaller than a Common Murre, measuring 10.2-11.4 in (26-29 cm) in length and weighing 10.9-19.4 oz (310-550 g).
– Atlantic puffins breed in burrows on islands in the North Atlantic, and winter at sea.
– In flight, puffins flap their small wings frantically to stay aloft, but underwater those wings become powerful flippers that allow the birds to catch small fish one by one until they have a beak full.
– Puffin chicks are known as “pufflings”.
– Like many seabirds, the Atlantic puffin is long-lived, averaging 30 plus years.
– The Atlantic puffin is a bird of the colder waters of the North Atlantic Ocean.
– During the breeding season, their carotenoid-rich diet turns their bills and feet bright orange, but during winter, their bills and feet fade to duller shades.
– Atlantic puffins have a very distinctive beak that is broad and triangular when viewed from the side.
– They are colonial nesters, and they start to breed at the age of 4 or 5.
– Both parents take care of the chick, and the eggs are incubated for approximately 40 days.
Overall, the Atlantic puffin is a fascinating seabird that has adapted to life in the ocean and has unique characteristics that make it stand out among other seabirds.
Laysan Albatross
The Laysan albatross is a large seabird that ranges across the North Pacific, with the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands being home to 99.7% of the population. Here are some interesting facts about the Laysan albatross:
– Laysan albatrosses are among the smaller albatrosses, but they are still very large seabirds with very long, very narrow wings.
– They have a thick neck and a large head, and they are slightly smaller, more slender, and narrower-winged than a brown pelican, but much larger than a western gull.
– Laysan albatrosses measure 31.1-31.9 in (79-81 cm) in length, weigh 77.6-151.7 oz (2200-4300 g), and have a wingspan of 76.8-79.9 in (195-203 cm).
– Laysan albatrosses are pelagic birds of the open Pacific Ocean, and they spend nearly half their year at sea, only coming to land to breed.
– They are masterful soarers, able to fly great distances and through the fiercest storms while barely even flapping their wings.
– Laysan albatrosses are colonial nesters, and colonies can number in the tens of thousands of pairs.
– The biggest colony, on Midway Atoll, numbers over 600,000 breeding pairs, which is over 70% of the world’s breeding pairs.
– Laysan albatrosses are known for their ability to glide over the open ocean for hours at a time without a single flap of their wings, sailing hundreds of miles a day.
– They feed mostly on squid, but also eat fish and fish eggs, crustaceans, some carrion, and refuse.
– Laysan albatrosses are threatened by plastic pollution, as many die after swallowing large amounts of floating plastic trash, apparently mistaking it for food.
– Sea level rise is also likely to inundate some nesting colonies on islands.
Overall, the Laysan albatross is a fascinating seabird that has adapted to life in the ocean and has unique characteristics that make it stand out among other seabirds.
Double-crested Cormorant
The double-crested cormorant is a large waterbird with small heads on long, kinked necks. They have thin, strongly hooked bills, roughly the length of the head. Their heavy bodies sit low in the water. Here are some interesting facts about the double-crested cormorant:
– The double-crested cormorant is a prehistoric-looking, matte-black fishing bird with yellow-orange facial skin.
– They are larger than the Neotropic cormorant, but smaller than the great cormorant.
– Double-crested cormorants measure 27.6-35.4 in (70-90 cm) in length, weigh 42.3-88.2 oz (1200-2500 g), and have a wingspan of 44.9-48.4 in (114-123 cm).
– The double-crested cormorant is found near rivers and lakes, and in coastal areas, and is widely distributed across North America, from the Aleutian Islands in Alaska down to Florida and Mexico.
– Once threatened by the use of DDT, the numbers of this bird have increased markedly in recent years.
– Double-crested cormorants are very adaptable and may be found in almost any aquatic habitat, from rocky northern coasts to mangrove swamps to large reservoirs to small inland ponds.
– They build their nests mostly on trees near or over water, on sea cliffs, or on the ground on islands.
– Double-crested cormorants are often considered a foe to fishermen because they can consume large amounts of fish.
– They are colonial nesters, and they start to breed at the age of 3-5 years.
– Both parents take care of the chick, and the eggs are incubated for approximately 25-30 days.
– Double-crested cormorants are known for their excellent fishing skills and are often seen diving into the water to catch fish.
Overall, the double-crested cormorant is a fascinating seabird that has adapted to life in aquatic environments and has unique characteristics that make it stand out among other seabirds.
American Oystercatcher
The American oystercatcher is a large shorebird that is found along the Atlantic and Gulf Coasts of the US. Here are some interesting facts about the American oystercatcher:
Appearance:
– The American oystercatcher has distinctive black and white plumage and a long, bright orange beak.
– The head and breast are black and the back, wings, and tail are greyish-black.
– The underparts are white, as are feathers on the inner part of the wing which become visible during flight.
– The irises are yellow and the eyes have orange orbital rings.
– The legs are pink.
– Adults are between 42–52 cm (17–20 in) in length.
Habitat:
– American oystercatchers are found along the Atlantic and Gulf Coasts of the US.
– They are strictly coastal, in areas with extensive sand beaches, tidal mudflats, salt marsh.
– They nest primarily on sand and shell beaches, dunes, and salt marshes.
– They may also nest on dredge spoil islands.
Behavior:
– American oystercatchers are the only birds in their environment with the ability to open large mollusks such as clams and oysters.
– They forage by walking in shallow water, searching for food by sight.
– They have two methods of opening the shells of bivalves. In one, finding a mussel with its shell slightly open, the oystercatcher quickly jabs its bill into the opening, cutting the muscles and then cleaning out the contents. In the other method, the bird simply hammers on the shell to break it open.
– Foraging oystercatchers often attract other birds eager to share (or steal from) the oystercatcher’s “raw bar,” including Willets, large gulls, and Ruddy Turnstones.
– American oystercatchers were nearly hunted to extinction in the 19th century for their plumage and eggs, but populations recovered well after passage of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act in 1918.
Conservation:
– The current population of American oystercatchers is estimated to be 43,000.
– There are estimated to be 1,500 breeding pairs along the Atlantic and Gulf Coasts of the US.
– American Oystercatchers were nearly hunted to extinction in the 19th century for their plumage and eggs, but populations recovered well after passage of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act in 1918.
– Major threats still faced by this eye-catching shorebird include habitat loss from coastal development, climate change, and human disturbance.
Greater Flamingo
The greater flamingo is the most widespread and largest species of the flamingo family, and is common in the Old World, found in Northern and Sub-Saharan Africa, the Indian Subcontinent, the Middle East, the Levant, the Persian Gulf, the Gulf of…. Here are some interesting facts about the greater flamingo:
Appearance:
– The greater flamingo is the largest living species of flamingo, averaging 110–150 cm (43–59 in) tall and weighing 2–4 kg (4.4–8.8 lb).
– The largest male flamingos have been recorded to be up to 187 cm (74 in) tall and to weigh 4.5 kg (9.9 lb).
– Most of the plumage is pinkish-white, but the wing coverts are red and the primary and secondary flight feathers are black.
– The bill is pink with a restricted black tip, and the legs are entirely pink.
– The call is a goose-like honking.
Habitat:
– Greater flamingos reside in mudflats and shallow coastal lagoons with salt water.
– They have a large elevational range, residing from sea level to 4,500 meters.
– They are mainly found in shallow waters of lagoons, lakes, estuaries, and muddy beaches.
– These waters all have a very high salt content or they are extremely alkaline, with a pH up to 11.
– Greater flamingos can also be found near sewage treatment plants, dams, in rice fields, and on low islands, sea bays, and salt marshes.
– In Africa, they are found near hot springs.
Behavior:
– Greater flamingos are serially monogamous birds, forming pair bonds that remain together only for a single breeding season.
– They breed in dense colonies.
– Greater flamingos are extremely social and travel in groups of up to thousands, communicating using auditory and visual cues.
– They travel constantly, looking for areas with adequate resources to sustain the entire flock, especially during mating season.
– Greater flamingos keep their young together in crèches.
– Adults that are supervising creches tend to be hostile towards hatchlings if they do not have young in that creche.
– Greater flamingos are a loud species that produces a noisy cackle.
Conservation:
– The current population of greater flamingos is estimated to be around 2.5 million.
– Greater flamingos are listed as a species of “Least Concern” by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).
– However, habitat loss, pollution, and hunting are still major threats to the species.
– Greater flamingos are also hunted for their meat and eggs in some parts of their range.
Overall, the greater flamingo is a fascinating bird with unique characteristics that make it stand out among other birds.
Penguin
Penguins are a group of aquatic flightless birds that live almost exclusively in the Southern Hemisphere. They are widely considered endearing for their unusually upright, waddling gait, swimming ability, and lack of fear of humans. Their black-and-white plumage is often likened to a white tie suit.
Some writers and artists have penguins based at the North Pole, but there are no wild penguins in the Arctic. The cartoon series Chilly Willy helped perpetuate this myth, as the title penguin would interact with Arctic or sub-Arctic species, such as polar bears and walruses.
Penguins have flippers instead of wings, and they cannot fly. On land, they waddle walking upright, though when snow conditions are right, they will slide on their bellies.
In the water, they are expert swimmers and divers, and some species can reach speeds of up to 15 miles per hour. The penguin’s distinctive coloring—black body with white belly—helps camouflage the bird in the water as it searches for meals of small shrimp, fish, crabs, and squid.
There are 18-21 species of penguins, and they range in size from the blue, or fairy, penguin (Eudyptula minor), which is about 35 cm (14 inches) in height and approximately 1 kg (about 2 pounds) in weight, to the emperor penguin (Aptenodytes forsteri), which can grow up to 115 cm (45 inches) and weigh 25 to 40 kg (55 to 90 pounds).
Penguins are colonial breeders, and they form large breeding colonies, some of which can number in the millions. Penguins are also known for their unique breeding behaviors, such as the emperor penguin’s habit of balancing an egg on its feet and covering it with its brood pouch, a very warm layer of feathered skin designed to keep the egg cozy.
Penguins face a number of threats, including habitat loss, pollution, and hunting. Commercial fishing in the Southern Ocean region can force many penguin species to compete for the fish they eat, and the practice can also lead to accidental capture and drowning in fishing nets. Climate change is also a growing concern for penguins that live in Antarctica, such as the emperor penguin.
FAQS
1. What are some of the most common types of sea birds found at the beach?
Some of the most common types of sea birds found at the beach include seagulls, pelicans, and cormorants.
2. What are some unique characteristics of sea birds?
Sea birds have adapted to life in marine environments and spend their days around the shoreline or further out in the open sky over the ocean. They have flippers instead of wings, and they cannot fly. In the water, they are expert swimmers and divers, and some species can reach speeds of up to 15 miles per hour.
3. What are some of the threats that sea birds face?
Sea birds face a number of threats, including habitat loss, pollution, and hunting. Commercial fishing in the Southern Ocean region can force many penguin species to compete for the fish they eat, and the practice can also lead to accidental capture and drowning in fishing nets. Climate change is also a growing concern for penguins that live in Antarctica, such as the emperor penguin.
4. What are some unique breeding behaviors of penguins?
Penguins are colonial breeders, and they form large breeding colonies, some of which can number in the millions. Penguins are also known for their unique breeding behaviors, such as the emperor penguin’s habit of balancing an egg on its feet and covering it with its brood pouch, a very warm layer of feathered skin designed to keep the egg cozy.
5. What are some unique features of water diving birds?
Water diving birds have unique features that allow them to dive into the water and catch prey in the most stunning styles. They have sharp eyesight, and they can detect fish underwater. They then hover momentarily before plunging into the water at high speeds, with their feet first, and in most cases, they submerge their entire bodies.
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Category: Birds
