Mangoverde :: World Bird Guide :: Frigatebirds :: Lesser Frigatebird

Lesser Frigatebird Fregata ariel

Described by: Gray, G. R. (1845)
Alternate common name(s): Least Frigatebird
Old scientific name(s): None known by website authors

Photographs

Lady Elliot Island, Queensland, Australia - Dec, 2003 © Tom Tarrant  Lady Elliot Island, Queensland, Australia - Dec, 2003 © Tom Tarrant 
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Range

Tropical Indian Ocean and Pacific Ocean; Tropical Atlantic Ocean;
Two populations;
Widely separated breeding colonies;
(1) In the w. Indian Ocean on Aldabra, Tromelin, Comoro (Moheli Is.), Agalega and Maldive Is.
(2) In the e. Indian Ocean on the Chagos and Cocos-Keeling Is., Arafura Sea, Coral Sea and in the sw. Pacific Ocean on Paracel, Solomon Is., Bismarck Arch., Fiji, Johnston, Kiribati (Phoenix, Howland, Line), Caroline, Marquesas, Society, Tonga, Cook (Penrhyn, Suwarrow), Samoa, American Samoa (Rose Atoll), Tuamotu Is., Vanuatu, Nuguria Is., New Caledonia (Walpole and Surprise Is.), Australia (n. Western Australia on Ashmore Reef, Adele Is., Sunday and Swan Is. in Key Sound, Bedout and Lacepede Is., Northern Territory on Rocky Is., Queensland on Raine Is., Iron Range National Park at Portland Roads and Gillett Cay to n. New South Wales at North Stradbroke near Brisbane).
(3) In the S. Atlantic on Trinidade and Martin Vaz. Disperses throughout the tropical Pacific Ocean s. of 15°N, in the Atlantic Ocean off Brazil, s. Red Sea, Gulf of Aden, Ethiopia, Somalia, Kenya, n. Madagascar, Mascarene Is., Yemen, sw. India, w. Sri Lanka, Malaya, Indonesia, Java, Sumatra, Borneo, Philippines (Luzon, Mindanao), New Guinea, s. China, Taiwan, Japan, Siberia (Kamchatka) and the w. Hawaiian Is. (Kure and French Frigate Shoals rarely).

Videos

No videos are available for this species

Sounds

Location unknown - Date unknown Source: Australian Broadcasting Corporation

References

Clements, James F. Birds of the World: A Checklist. Vista, CA: Ibis Publishing Company, 2000.

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