The sleek-looking Nazca Booby of the Galapagos Islands.
Not many years ago, the Nazca Booby was considered a subspecies of the Masked Booby, but now it is recognized as it’s own unique species.
They are mostly white in colour, with black wing tips and black around the face. Despite breeding and hatching on islands with few predators (the Galapagos), the Nazca Boobies will only raise one chick.
Usually two eggs are laid, and whichever hatches first (if they both hatch) will eventually push the other baby Nazca Booby out of the nest. Once out of the protected ‘ring’, the parents will refuse to feed the abandoned baby and it will inevitably die! Cruel siblings huh?
Real nice shot of a Nazca Booby, I’m surprised they give so few chicks considering they lack predators!
Alex | Partial Parallax recently posted..Takayama – Escaping The City
Thanks Alex….and ya, you’d think they would break the rules sometimes and feed 2 chicks…surely there is enough food around! But perhaps they’re just lazy? Ha!