Long-tailed Jaeger
Stercorarius longicaudus
Morphology 3
Long-tailed jaegers are the smallest of the Stercorarius species. They can weigh anywhere from 280-310g at adulthood with females generally on the heavier end of this distribution. In immature and basic plumage there are very few differences between long-tailed jaegers and the 3 other species of jaegers.
Juveniles of the species have central rectrices which are not much longer than the other ones. They have mostly brown plumage on their upper regions. The tips of feathers in juveniles are often white in coloration and have white barring on several body parts including the flanks and under-wing coverts. There are two juvenile plumage types: light and dark. Light type juveniles have grey heads and whitish abdomen with brown bars. Dark types are so called due to entirely dark underparts.
Habitat and ecology 4
This species is marine and highly pelagic, rarely occuring within sight of land except when breeding. It feeds mainly on lemmings during the summer but will also take shrews, many insects, berries and small birds when microtines are scarce. Its winter diet is largely unknown, but probably includes marine insects and fish with some scavenging and kleptoparasitism. Breeding begins in June with birds widely scattered over the Arctic and subarctic or montane tundra, up to 1300 m in Scandinavia. It is highly territorial (del Hoyo et al. 1996).
Sources and Credits
- (c) Stephen Clegg, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-ND), http://www.flickr.com/photos/18735339@N00/2709008441
- (c) Seabamirum, some rights reserved (CC BY), https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/64/Long-tailed_Jaeger.jpg
- Adapted by Yukon Conservation Data Centre from a work by (c) The Regents of the University of Michigan and its licensors, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-SA), http://eol.org/data_objects/31424353
- (c) International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-SA), http://eol.org/data_objects/31273026
More Info
Range Map
iNaturalist.ca Map
| Color | black, grey, white |
|---|---|
| Animal | Bird |
| Bird | gull |
