blue-footed boobies - a funny bird with a sky-blue legs.It belongs to the family olushevyh and lives mainly near the tropical seas.
origin of the name The origin of the name of gannets quite interesting.In English, it sounds like a booby, and comes from the Spanish bobo.Translate this word can be as a "clown", "fool" or "idiot."This name is a bird due to the fact that the land it behaves awkwardly.However, like most seabirds that spend a significant part of life in the air or at sea.However, this is not the only reason.Man is not a source of fear for this type of birds like blue-footed boobies.Photos taken during their studies prove conclusively that the gannets are not afraid of human contact.And it is known, it is not always safe.
Distribution
blue-footed boobies is found only along the coasts of the eastern Pacific Ocean.The area of its habitat - the coast of the Gulf of California, the west coast of South and Central America, Mexico and Peru.In total there are about 40 thousand pairs of these unusual birds.The Galapagos Islands are the main place that was chosen blue-footed boobies.Habitat of this species - the rocks, the earth and the trees, although the birds are mainly used to build nests.Most of the time gannets spend at sea.
On Galapagos Islands blue-footed boobies are protected by law.There are nests of more than 20 thousand pairs of birds.
Appearance
main distinguishing feature of gannets - is, of course, foot saturated blue, turquoise or light blue.Do chicks color very light feet.At length the birds reach 70-80 centimeters and weigh up to three kilograms, while females are slightly larger than males.The wingspan of these exotic birds up to one and a half meters.
gannet plumage is brown with white.Features its alternation of blue-footed boobies give "scratchy kind."The beak of this bird has a gray-green color.The eyes of birds are located on either side of the beak, but they are looking forward to provide its good vision.Birds have yellow eyes, but the iris of males is much brighter than the females.In addition, visually their eyes appear larger due to the pigment ring, which is located around the pupil.
Breathes blue-footed boobies corners of her mouth as her nostrils always closed.This special tool is necessary at the time of the diving birds.
blue-footed boobies.What feeds this exotic bird
gannet diet consists mainly of fish.It anchovies, sardines and mackerel, mackerel.To catch such prey, birds dive into the water to a depth of 25 meters.However, they can reach speeds of under water up to 100 kilometers per hour.Sometimes for food do not have to dive.Gannets can catch the flying fish, which move over the surface of the sea.
In addition, these birds do not refuse to eat squid or internal large fish, which is located near Panama.
Features
Gannet hunting may hunt either alone or in pairs or in a pack.Such swarms, most of the twelve birds fly over the pond, which is found in small fish.If you notice a flock of production, all of its members while diving.They can do this from a height of several hundred meters.Gannet caught fish eat there, underwater.
interesting is the fact that they catch prey not during diving and surfacing at.This is due to the fact that most of the fish back is dark in color and merges with the water column.Therefore, while at depth, to notice them hard enough.The stomach has a bright color, besides different silver patterns.This method of hunting is much more effective.
blue-footed boobies (kuksha), which hunts alone, never having lunch with the rest of the pack.They try to stay in seclusion.Hunting for fish most often occurs in the early morning or evening.
methods of hunting males and females are different.This is primarily due to the size of their body.Since females heavier, they can dive much deeper and larger fish.The body of the male is much easier, however, they are not able to descend to a considerable depth.However, nature has bestowed its large tail, which helps fishing in the gorges.Thus, if the couple brings chicks, the male brings food to them more often, but it is small.
mating dance
If one of the birds and a distinctive behavior in the pair, it's blue-footed boobies.Male courtship dance is performed to attract the attention of females liked.During his "performances" male tries to focus on their feet, because they are brighter than the more chances to create a pair.He cranes his neck, he puts his sharp tail and in turn raises their bright feet.Performed a dance, accompanied by his eager bird whistle.
After courting gentleman were taken, gannets bows, after which the dance is repeated again, but this time together.They raise and lower legs, though agreeing in such a way on the construction of the joint housing.In addition, the male presents to his girlfriend a bright twig, which subsequently goes to the arrangement of the slot.Only after this ritual is considered complete.
Difficulties choice partner
Scientists have proven: the brighter the color of the clutches of the male, the more eggs the female will be able to defer.Careful selection of a partner is linked more to the fact that females need to allocate the number of resources that will be allocated to one egg.A large number of eggs per clutch means less yolk in each of them, but if the parents are good genetic data, the offspring will be more likely to survive.
However, the color of the legs is important not only during the selection of female partners.Males also pay attention to it.The female is more colorful feet can lay more eggs, and males boobies will show them special attention.When laying eggs differ in size, then the parental care will focus on those that are.
In the case where the color of the clutches of the individuals of the same, the birds will be well taken care of everything progeny, regardless of what size they are.
Reproduction
blue-footed boobies are satisfied with its nest in small pits that couple together treads in the soil.At the same time different pairs of sockets are a considerable distance from each other.Period of nesting gannets have lasted a whole year.Every eight months, the female lays two - three eggs.Such a small number is due to the fact that birds do not warm them with her body heat, and with the feet.In the mating season the flow of blood to the extremities increases, and the temperature, respectively, increases to + 39 °.Increased blood flow also contributes to swelling and induration paws.Hatch male offspring with a female alternately for 45 days until the chicks will not appear on the light.Gannets considered monogamous birds, but there are cases where they have multiple partners.
Cubs
Many birds take care of their offspring.It makes it and blue-footed boobies.Chicks are born very small and helpless, but soon their body is covered with thick down.The first month of the cubs alone can not control their body temperature.Only some time later replaced by feathers fluff.The chicks remain in the nest for three months, and only then leave it.
To ensure the survival of offspring, gannets have to constantly hunt and bring them food.Does it often male, but if the food is small, and can begin to hunt the female.Sometimes the couple together leaves the nest, but this behavior is quite dangerous.Natural enemies gannet chicks are skua gulls and frigates.They ruin unattended nests.If gannets lose offspring, they begin to lay eggs again, but watching them more carefully.
Once the young leave the nest, she immediately throws herself into the sea, but swim or fly at that age they still do not know how.Each bird under the skin have special air sacs that do not allow chicks to dive.Doing this they learn to the extent that it increases their weight.
Puberty in these tropical birds comes at the age of 3-4 years.
Why booby blue legs
Blue-footed boobies clutches provides a special pigment - carotenoids.He is constantly produced in the body of poultry due to a diet rich in fresh sea fish.Further, this pigment is an antioxidant and stimulates the immune system.Thus, the color of the clutches of young and healthy bird will be much brighter.If the diet of blue-footed boobies disappears fresh fish, the color of her paws becomes darker after 48 hours.The fact that the carotenoid is necessary to generate a sufficient amount of a lipid source which is marine fish.
unusual color paws plays an important role during mating.That they first drew attention blue-footed boobies.Why blue paw attract females?Bright color - a sign of good health and a strong immune system of the male.As with other female animals for boobies thing - to get a genetically healthy offspring.Therefore, it is more likely to choose a male or saturated with aquamarine blue paws.Males, which have legs gray-blue color, the risk to remain single.With age, the color saturation in males significantly decreases, which is not conducive to the growth of their popularity among females.
Rules of Life blue-footed boobies
1. Most of his life boobies spend at sea.The land they need only to nest and raise offspring.
2. It may happen that the couple is not able to catch enough food for their offspring.In this case, choose the biggest and strongest of the chicks, and all extracted boobies give him food.Thus they ensure the survival of at least one chick to become strong enough to continue its kind.
3. blue-footed boobies can communicate with each other.They emit a hoarse shouts and whistles.Such communication regains an important role both during the mating season, and later, when there is the need for co-parenting offspring.
4. Scientists are still unable to set a time during which the gannets can remain under water.Embodiments vary from several seconds to two minutes.The maximum depth to which they dive, hunting for fish, is also unknown.
5. Modern gannets do not build nests full.They trample depression in the ground, and his fence off a small number of branches.
6. blue-footed boobies - one of the few birds of some kind, whose families may be called "many children."Often, in the genus gannets only one chick.
