Great Frigatebirds

Great Frigatebirds flying over Hawaii
There were too many to get in one photo!
Great Frigatebirds flying over Hawaii
Great Frigatebirds look like they’re not even trying when they fly!

I was driving down to Upolu for my usual walk when I saw a few Great Frigatebirds off in the distance. They seemed to be heading my way, so I pulled over and waited. As I did so, more appeared. They glided down towards the coast, then banked left to cross the road, which is when I took these photos.

Great Frigatebirds flying over Hawaii
They fly easily in formation.

I counted 17 in all, though there might have been more. Usually, I see these birds in ones and twos, but larger flocks like these are, apparently, not unusual. Such gatherings can be simply social, but can also improve their chances in the search for food, as well as for spotting predators, not that they have a lot of those while flying.

A Great Frigatebird flying over Hawaii
Males have a red gular sac at the throat. It makes them easy to identify, even at a distance.

My bird book notes that most Great Frigatebirds seen in Hawaii are females or juveniles, but I regularly see males, which are easily identified by the red gular sac on their throat. This sac can be impressively inflated during courtship.

Posted for Bird of the Week LVIII. See more responses here.

Great Frigatebirds flying over Hawaii
Last seen heading to Maui.

10 thoughts on “Great Frigatebirds”

  2. kzmcb's avatarkzmcb

    Beautiful shots, Graham, particularly of the red sac. You’d never get that detail with a phone. I regularly try to capture flicks of pelicans and get an average result.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Graham's avatarGraham Post author

      I think it depends on the phone. Some are very good these days, but mine isn’t one of them. I only use it if my camera isn’t handy, which it usually is.

      Like

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