This record was submitted by RICHARD WHITE on 22 Oct 2023. All user submissions will be reviewed by the Records Committee. Entries listed here may be edited for brevity and clarity while the original record is left unchanged.
This record was submitted to the Records Committee for review.
The Records Committee began deliberating on this record.
The Records Committee completed its review and finalised its verdict.
| Species | Red-footed Booby Sula sula |
|---|---|
| Record ID | 10627 |
| Date | 22 Oct 2023 |
| Location | Henderson Waves |
| Count | 1 individual |
| Age | Immature |
| Date added | 22 Oct 2023 |
| Vote results | For: 5, Abstain: 1 Wild: 5 |
|---|---|
| Verdict | Accepted / Wild (Verifiable) |
| Identification |
|---|
| Initially picked up by others, not sure who found the bird but not me. I became aware of the approach of the bird when I heard mutterings of 'frigatebird'. I quickly picked up the bird flying head on towards the crowd on the bridge. Initially I considered frigatebird but it soon became apparent it was a booby. Typical sulid appearance - slim pointed wings, slim pointed head and bill, slim tail end. General appearance was pale/brownish and it didn't look like an adult so immature plumges needed to be considered. Not an Abbott's or Masked which would be more contrasting dark/white. Brown booby would be more uniformly brown from the chest to the vent in immature plumages. All that's left is Red-footed which it fits well. Pale belly contrasting with dark underwing and tail. Pale bill base with darker tip. Examination of images revealed red feet. eBird checklist and images belong to CN Lee (although probably belong to Cornell now?) |
| Habitat/behaviour |
|---|
| Bizarrely this seabird was flying roughly north-east, that is away from the coast. Relatively low, it disappeared behind the ridge line/trees on more than one occasion. Typical relatively level and direct flight of a booby (compared with a frigatebird which is more likely to circle/thermal). Although given the overland circumstances I would not have been surprised if the bird had been behaving atypically. |
| Viewing conditions |
|---|
| Good light, minimum distance to the bird maybe 500 m so not close. |
| Observer's experience |
|---|
| Many thousands seen in all plumages in all the tropical oceans of the world. |
| Observer's experience w/similar species |
|---|
| All other sulids to varying degrees. |
Bird Society of Singapore. (2023). Record 10627: Red-footed Booby Sula sula. Retrieved October 22, 2024, from https://records.singaporebirds.com/record/10627/.