Peruvian booby

The Peruvian booby (Sula variegata) is an endemic bird of the Peruvian current, and an important predator of the marine community to which it belongs. Its distribution is much less widespread than other closely related booby species. It is the most abundant seabird species that inhabits the Peruvian coast and the second most important guano-producing seabird. During the mid-twentieth century, the Peruvian booby population reached 3 million birds.

The Peruvian booby has brown upperparts and a white head and underparts. There is noticeable white mottling on the upper side of the wings. Their wing-coverts are tipped white, creating a scale-like pattern. They have a long, pointed, grey bill and grey webbed feet. This differentiates them from characteristic coloring of the blue-footed and red-footed boobies. Female boobies tend to be larger than their male counterparts: their bodies an average of 19% heavier, and their wings 4% larger.

The Peruvian booby is within the genus Sula. It shares this genus with other boobies, including the blue-footed booby, the red-footed booby, the brown booby, the masked booby, and the Nazca booby.

There are no subspecies of Peruvian booby, but some members of the species have been seen to hybridize with blue-footed boobies.

The Peruvian booby is confined to the waters of the Humboldt current, off the coast of South America. They can be found off the shores of Peru, south to the middle part of Chile. Their abundance on the islands of Lobos de Tierra and Lobos de Afuera have resulted in a great deal of research being done on the species from these locations.

Their colonies nest on smooth, windswept sand flats that allow their nests to stay between a temperature range of approximately 28 °C to 38 °C. These salt flats, or pampas, allow for a fairly high density of booby nests.

Female Peruvian boobies have a range of vocalizations; from trumpet-like quacks to honks. The male booby, on the other hand, tends to whistle. This kind of auditory communication is unique to adult members of the species, as it takes a few years to be able to produce such vocalizations.

The diet of the Peruvian booby consists primarily of anchovy, particularly Peruvian anchoveta. However, there is some variation in their diet based on their life stage. As well as anchovy, they are also documented to eat mackerel, depending on the relative abundance of their prey. They rely on the cold, productive waters of the Humboldt Current upwelling system for a consistent food source.