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Bird guideRed-footed Booby

They perform elaborate greeting rituals, including harsh squawks and the male's display of his blue throat, also including short dances.

Spot this speciesRead on Wikipedia
⚠️Not listed
🍃Indigenous: Red-Legged Gannet, Red-Footed Gannet

At a glance

FamilyBoobies and Gannets
SizeLarge
RarityUncommon
HabitatNests on offshore islands (usually in trees and bushes, unlike other boobies, which nest on the ground).
Best timeMost reliable in Queensland from October to November.

Sounds

Sound sample
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Recorded by Barry Edmonston

Range map

Range map

243visible hotspots
1230visible records
3states
Low confidenceMediumHigh confidence

Aggregated occurance data is sourced from 14 different actively-updating datasets including eBird Australia, iNaturalist Australia, BirdLife Australia, and multiple state-based bird surveys through Atlas of Living Australia.

Species notes

Overview

Adult plumage is variable, but all have bright red feet and colorful bill and face; some have wholly brown plumage, others are white with a black trailing edge to the wings; the tail can be black or white. Immatures of all types are brown overall with dull pinkish feet. Looks smaller and more slender than other boobies, with more crooked wings.

Behavior

Nests on offshore islands (usually in trees and bushes, unlike other boobies, which nest on the ground).

Gallery

Regional timing

Queensland
Peak: October to November577 records
New South Wales
Peak: February46 records
Victoria
Peak: February3 records
Northern Territory
Peak: February4 records
Western Australia
Peak: September2 records

Commonly confused with

Masked BoobySula dactylatraAdult is mostly white with a black trailing edge to the wings, black tail, and dark mask at base of stout yellow bill. Immature has brown head, neck, and upperparts, sometimes with messy white patches. Immature told from most other boobies by pale yellowish bill and mostly white underwings. Essentially identical to Nazca Booby until at least one year old, when Nazca starts developing orange or pinkish bill color.→Brown BoobySula leucogasterHead, neck, and upperparts are solidly brown. Adult has a well-demarcated white belly and immature has a variably mottled brown belly that rarely looks solidly brown. Compare with other boobies and with juvenile Northern Gannet. Often seen from beaches, sometimes just beyond the breakers. Recently showing up more regularly as a vagrant on inland lakes and reservoirs in the U. S. and Canada, and further north along the Atlantic coast. Similar to recently split Cocos Booby, but usually separated by range, and never shows a whitish head.→
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