4 
The Red- tailed Tropicbird 
The 
found in 
the Pacific 
one of three species of 
birds. Some consider it more beau- 
tiful than the other two species, 
the White-tailed (or Yellow- billed) 
and Red-billed Tropicbirds. Tropic- 
birds are distinguished by their 
two extraordinarily long central 
tail feathers, which may be longer 
than the bird’s body. The Tropic- 
bird has been called "marlin- spike" 
because of the resemblance of its 
tail feathers to this instrument, 
but a more commonly used name is 
"bo 'sun bird, " a name derived from 
the Red-tailed Tropicbird’ s 
piercing call, which British 
sailors thought to resemble that of 
a boatswain’s pipe. The Red-tailed 
Tropicbird’ s attractive tail fea- 
thers have made it the prey of many 
hunters. These hunters sold the 
long red plumes to feather mer- 
chants, who used them to decorate 
milady’s hat. Feather poaching 
reached its peak in the beginning 
of the twentieth century. A 
United States vessel, the Iroquois, 
stopped at Laysan Island, Hawaiian 
Leewards, to evict 75 poachers in 
1904 in an early official action 
against this trade. 
The Red- tailed Tropicbird has 
all white plumage, except for a 
black marking in front of the eyes, 
a red bill, and the long red tail 
feathers. About 18 inches long, it 
has a wingspan of 35-40 inches. 
Adults often have a rose flush to 
their feathers, while immatures 
are sat in- white with black barring 
on the back and head. Nestlings 
are covered with pale gray down. 
These birds are most often 
seen at sea alone or in small 
groups. They flap their wings 
slowly as they fly high above the 
water searching for food, although 
their curious nature attracts them 
to any approaching ship, and they 
circle intently around the mast 
top. Their food is flying fish and 
squid. The bird feeds by diving 
from heights of twenty to forty 
feet above the water, sometimes 
staying under the water for as long 
as 26 seconds. 
Breeding occurs throughout 
the year on some islands. Here the 
birds congregate in groups of up 
to twelve. During their aerial 
courtship display, Red-tailed 
Tropicbirds circle around one 
another, emitting harsh cries and 
switching their red -tail featters 
from side to side. When nesting 
the Red-tailed Tropicbird makes a 
shallow scrape in which it lays a 
single egg, which is incubated by 
both parents. On high volcanic 
islands, such . as Necker Island in 
the Hawaiian Leewards, the ne&t 
scrape is in a nook on the cliff 
face, while on low sandy atolls the 
birds nest under rocks, fallen 
logs, or in dense vegetation, as on 
Cook Island, Christmas Atoll. The 
handsome egg is speckled with 
reddish-brown spots on a dirty 
white background. These birds do 
not readily leave their nests when 
disturbedj rather, they set up a 
raucous cry of protest, the chick 
in a higher pitch than its parent. 
The Pacific Ocean Biological 
Survey Program has traced little 
inter- island movement among tropic- 
birds, despite their widespread 
presence in the Pacific. 
Donna Shapiro 
Red- tailed Tropicbird, 
the tropical regions of 
and Indian Oceans, is 
Tropic- 
