Aves |
Charadriiformes |
Laridae
Environment: milieu / climate zone / depth range / distribution range
Ecology
Pelagic. Tropical; 35°N - 40°S (Ref. 96995)
Indo-Pacific, Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean.
Length at first maturity / Size / Weight / Age
Maturity: Lm ? range ? - ? cm Max length : 45.0 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 8812); max. published weight: 180.00 g (Ref. 356); max. reported age: 36 years (Ref. 8545)
Culmen: 4.53 cm; tarsus: 2.52 cm; wing: 30.5 cm.
Total Length: 43 to 45 cm; Wingspan: 86 to 94 cm (Ref. 8812). Pelagic (Ref. 122680). Coastal and oceanic islands, and offshore (Ref. 356). In beach, shoreline and pelagic zone (Ref. 116102). Pantropic, pelagic species. Strong flyer, high over the ocean. Forms large breeding colonies on tropical and subtropical islands on sand, coral and rock, with or without vegetation. Forages in flocks (Ref. 84934). Remains 10 to 20 m above water then descends and wheels in circles before grabbing its food (Ref. 356). Feeding techniques: air dipping and contact dipping from the water surface (Refs. 356, 96995). Diet consists of squid, goatfish, flyingfish and mackerel scad (Ref. 122680). Does not plunge dive and rarely stays long in water as plumage is not waterproof. Colonies may suffer heavy losses of eggs by predatory cats (Ref. 84934).
Life cycle and mating behavior
Maturity | Reproduction | Spawning | Eggs | Fecundity | Larvae
Birds go to the island at night, 3 months before laying. Hatching peaks in the middle of April. Most fledging shows in June and leave the island at the beginning of August while the adults leave at the end of August (Ref. 96995).
Lepage, D. 2007. (Ref. 7816)
IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 130435)
CITES status (Ref. 108899)
Not Evaluated
Not Evaluated
Threat to humans
Human uses
| FishSource |
Tools
Internet sources
Estimates based on models
Preferred temperature
(Ref.
115969): 23.3 - 29.2, mean 27.9 (based on 4066 cells).
Resilience
High, minimum population doubling time less than 15 months (K=5.28; tm=3; tmax=36).
Vulnerability
Low to moderate vulnerability (35 of 100).
Price category
Unknown.
