frigatebird!!! From this photo I took (zoom in to see how good it is. It’s such a good photo. Please clap)

Uncharismatic Fact of the Day

Most soaring birds rely on thermals-- updrafts of warm wind-- to keep them airborne. However, the great frigatebird doesn't need to use thermals to glide over the ocean! When entering areas without wind, these birds will intentionally fly into clouds, which contain thermals that can elevate them to an altitude of nearly 4 km (13,000 ft)!

(Image: A female great frigatebird (Fregata minor) by Dick Daniels)

Want to request an uncharismatic critter? Just send me proof of donation to any of these vetted fundraisers for Palestinian refugees!

Thanks to Captain Dan for making the rescue of this Magnificent Frigatebird down in offshore waters this afternoon. We were able to meet the boat at Galleon Marina and transfer the bird into care. The Frigatebird is waterlogged but uninjured and is recovering in our clinic. We will return the patient to the wild as soon as possible!

Great Frigatebird (Fregata minor), male displaying, family Fregatidae, order Suliformes, Galapagos

photograph by Yi Feng

This Magnificent Frigatebird was rescued down in offshore waters by boaters and brought to Hurricane Hole Marina. We were able to meet them there to transfer the Frigatebird into care. A small wound on the left side of the body has been treated to begin rehabilitation in our clinic. Thanks to everyone out there making a difference for wildlife in distress!

Magnificent Frigatebird

Magnificent Frigatebirds

They can’t swim and can barely walk on land so they hover for long periods of time looking for food.

If you ordered fast food with the Magnificent Frigatebird (Fregata magnificens), it would definitely steal your fries. This species is known for its kleptoparasitic behavior, meaning it specializes in snatching food from other sea birds—harassing them until they let go of their catches. But this winged pirate won’t stop there. The Frigatebird will even pester competitors who’ve recently eaten, forcing them to vomit up their meals! Then, it will chow down on its regurgitated prize. Males’ prominent red gular sacs are used to attract a mate and can puff up like balloons. This bird can generally be found soaring along the coasts of southern North America, Central America, and South America.

Photo: kuhnmi, CC BY 2.0, flickr

Magnificent Frigatebird (Fregata magnificens), male displaying his gular pouch to impress females, family Fregatidae, order Suliformes, Galapagos Islands, Ecuador

photograph by ojitos.2601

[2410/11080] Christmas frigatebird - Fregata andrewsi

Order: Suliformes Family: Fregatidae (frigatebirds)

Photo credit: Forest Botial-Jarvis via Macaulay Library

Awesome looking bird.

This is a Magnificent Frigatebird (Fregata magnificens), I forget where I took this picture, but it was during a Caribbean cruise. It was either Roatan, Honduras or Costa Maya., Mexico. I could nail it down, but that would mean trying to make my brain work this morning.

"The frigatebird is sometimes called the "man-o-war bird" because it harasses other birds until they regurgitate recently captured food, which the frigatebird snatches in midair." - allaboutbirds.org

Even though they can soar for weeks at a time, frigatebirds have little time for rest. Jockeying for position in the pack above our boat was common with proximity to the boat (and it’s flight-aiding slipstream) being the big prize.

Frigatebirds are kleptoparasitic, meaning they will often steal foraged food from other birds. Their targets can vary by species and in the Galapagos at least we saw them harass boobys and tropicbirds.

(Magnificent frigatebird, male plumage (both))

BOTD: Magnificent Frigatebird

Photo: Peter Swaine

- eBird

A male magnificent frigatebird (Fregata magnificens) shows off its gular sac midflight in St Petersberg, Florida, USA

by Dennis Adair

Magnificent Frigatebird (female) Fregata magnificens

St. John’s, Antigua, Antigua and Barbuda, 2014

Christmas Island Frigatebird (Fregata andrewsi) - photo by Prayitno Goentaro

Listed as critically endangered by the IUCN.

Great Frigatebird (Fregata minor)

© Christopher Moser-Purdy