Magnificent Frigatebird in Galápagos: Facts and Where to See It

Darwin called the frigatebird the condor of the oceans: it can stay on the wing for days and nights, gliding on thermals. The male is all black with a purple sheen and a large red throat pouch; the slightly larger female has a white breast and a blue ring around the eye.

• The display. Several males surround a female, inflate their red pouches and give a shrill trill, before the chosen pair performs an aerial display.
• The pirate. Frigatebirds chase boobies and tropicbirds, grab their tail feathers and shake them until they drop their catch, then snatch it before it hits the water.
• No waterproofing. Their feathers soak through within a minute or two on the water, so they feed from the surface without landing.

Magnificent frigatebirds breed throughout the year, building a nest of a few twigs in low shrubs near the shore and laying a single egg. The male cares for the chick for up to three months, then leaves to breed again; the female feeds it for a further nine months. That is the longest parental care known among birds, and the only known case of a seabird whose males and females follow different breeding cycles.

Main colonies are on North Seymour, Floreana, San Cristóbal and Genovesa. Elsewhere they rest in mangroves and trees and forage over reefs and coasts, and they often follow cruise boats between landings.

Guide sighting records list magnificent frigatebirds at 6 visitor sites. The North Seymour trail on North Seymour is rated Likely all year, and Possible for males with inflated red pouches from November to March. Punta Pitt on San Cristóbal and Black Turtle Cove on Santa Cruz are rated Possible; Kicker Rock, the Isabela Wetlands and Baroness Lookout on Floreana are rated Rare.

Frigatebirds are in Galápagos all year, and breeding times vary between islands with the climate. The guide records place males displaying their red pouches on North Seymour from November to March. In the next twelve months, 76 departures stop there in those months, and 685 stop at a site where frigatebirds are seen at all.

No, it is listed as Least Concern, and protected by the Galápagos National Park. Some populations worldwide are under pressure from habitat loss and from tourists entering breeding grounds. Frigatebirds also depend on dolphins and tuna that drive fish to the surface, so pressure on those species reaches them too, and marine plastic is a possible threat. On North Seymour, park rules keep visitors on the trail and at least 2 metres (6 feet) from the nests.

1. Expecting red pouches all year. The guide records place displaying males on North Seymour from November to March.
2. Leaving the trail for a better photo. Frigatebirds nest in low shrubs near the shore, and park rules keep visitors on marked trails.
3. Looking only on land. Watch the sky behind the boat; frigatebirds often follow it.