Skua Long-tailed 586 Nome 1906
On my last couple of trips to Nome I had seen a few Long-tailed Skusa [or Jaeger] but my photos were not particularly good. However this year they were commoner and often perching close to the road. These are two different birds showing the dusky undertail and overall grey colouration - usually the best way to tell them at a distance. I had hoped for good in-flight shots but wind direction meant that whenever I saw them hovering they were facing away from me. LTS spends most of its life far out to sea where it steals food from terns. During the breeding season they come onto the tundra to breed and hunt for voles, lemmings, insects and chicks - hovering like a kestrel over the moors.
Skua Long-tailed 586 Nome 1906
On my last couple of trips to Nome I had seen a few Long-tailed Skusa [or Jaeger] but my photos were not particularly good. However this year they were commoner and often perching close to the road. These are two different birds showing the dusky undertail and overall grey colouration - usually the best way to tell them at a distance. I had hoped for good in-flight shots but wind direction meant that whenever I saw them hovering they were facing away from me. LTS spends most of its life far out to sea where it steals food from terns. During the breeding season they come onto the tundra to breed and hunt for voles, lemmings, insects and chicks - hovering like a kestrel over the moors.