“Sula leucogaster”
The Brown Booby is a large, gull-like seabird mostly dark brown with white under wing coverts, belly and vent. Their bill and feet are yellow. Sexes are similar. The word “booby” comes from the Spanish “bobo” meaning “stupid fellow” and was probably inspired by the bird’s clumsiness on land. Young Brown Boobies have a gray bill and brown under wing, belly and vent. They are found worldwide in tropical seas; summer visitor to the Gulf coast and Caribbean Sea; may occur casually farther north along the Atlantic coast; occasionally seen in southern California’s Salton Sea; may also occur accidentally along Pacific coast. They are pelagic and breed on coastal islands. The Brown Booby is around half the size of the Blue-footed Booby and is found in the Caribbean Sea and in the Gulf Of Mexico.
The Brown Booby has a black head & back and a white belly, short wings and a long tail. The Brown Booby breeds in a large colony on coastal islands and is known to spend the winter at sea, covering a larger area. As with other species of booby, the Brown Booby is incredible at diving. Brown Boobies lay 1 to 3 white to pale blue-green eggs with chalky coating are laid in a shallow ground depression lined with grass, twigs and debris. Incubation ranges from 40 to 47 days and is carried out by both parents. They eat Parrotfish, Mullets, Flatfish, Halfbeaks, Flying Fish and other fish and forages by plunge diving or skimming the surface to catch fish that leap clear of the surf. On their breeding grounds, Brown Boobies emits harsh honking, brays and hoarse, hissing whistles and usually silent when at sea.