Chilean Skua
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Chilean Skua | ||||||||||||||
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Stercorarius chilensis (Bonaparte, 1857) |
The Chilean Skua (Stercorarius chilensis) is a large predatory seabird. While nowhere near the size of birds such as the Wandering Albatross, the Chilean Skua makes up for it in sheer aggression towards other birds. While other skuas plunder the kills of smaller seabirds for food, this avaricious bird seems not to care about the food, but instead enjoys the act of harassing the smaller gull. Chilean Skuas have been known to fly in large groups (dubbed 'wolfpacks' by a Scottish whaler who observed the birds in action) and literally hunt other seabirds, including those much larger than themselves.
[edit] References
- BirdLife International (2004). Stercorarius chilensis. 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. IUCN 2006. Retrieved on 11 February 2007. Database entry includes justification for why this species is of least concern