A Comparison of Foraging techniques of Brown Pelicans and Brown Boobies in Sandy ground Lagoon, Jost Van Dyke, B.V.I.

摘要

Brown Pelicans (Pelecanus occidentalis) fishing in a shallow (～1m deep) lagoon on Jost an Dyke, British Virgin islands, followed a well-known pattern in which the birds searched for prey from the air at heights of about 10 m or more. On sighting a target, they usually wheeled and made a near vertical plunge-dive. In marked contrast, Brown Boobies (Sula leucogaster) searched for prey in the lagoon by float- ing on the surface and putting their heads repeatedly into the water. Once a target was selected, a booby would remove its head from the water, take off, and fly at a height of 1 m or less for one to several meters before diving at a very shallow angle.