| Brown Skua | |
|---|---|
| Conservation status | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Charadriiformes |
| Family: | Stercorariidae |
| Genus: | Stercorarius |
| Species: | S. antarcticus |
| Binomial name | |
| Stercorarius antarcticus Brooke, 1978 |
|
| Synonyms | |
|
Catharacta antarctica |
|
The Brown Skua (Stercorarius antarcticus), also known as the Antarctic Skua, Southern Great Skua, Southern Skua, or Hākoakoa (Māori), is a large seabird that breeds in the subantarctic and Antarctic zones and moves further north when not breeding. Its taxonomy is highly complex and a matter of dispute, with some splitting it into two or three species: Falkland Skua (S. antarcticus), Tristan Skua (S. hamiltoni), and Subantarctic Skua (S. lönnbergi). To further confuse, it hybridizes with both the South Polar and Chilean Skuas, and the entire group have been considered subspecies of the Great Skua, a species otherwise restricted to the Northern Hemisphere. It feeds on fish (often via kleptoparasitism), small mammals, scraps, chicks, eggs and carrion.
This is the heaviest species of skua and rivals the largest gulls as the heaviest species in the shorebird order although not in length or wingspan. It is 52–64 cm (20–25 in) in length, 126–160 cm (50–63 in) in wingspan and has a body mass of 1.2–2.13 kg (2.6–4.7 lb).[1][2]