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Genus Catharacta
Antarctic Skua - The Brown Skua , also known as the Antarctic Skua, Southern Great Skua, Southern Skua, or Hākoakoa , is a seabird that breeds in the sub-Antarctic and Antarctic zones and moves further north when not breeding. Its taxonomy is highly complex and a matter of dispute, with some splitting it into two or three species: Falkland Skua , Tristan Skua , and Subantarctic Skua . To further confuse, it hybridizes with both the South Polar and Chilean Skuas, and the entire group have been considered subspecies of the Great Skua, a species otherwise restricted to the Northern Hemisphere. It feeds on fish , small mammals, scraps, chicks, eggs and carrion.
Chilean Skua - While nowhere near the size of birds such as the Wandering Albatross, the Chilean Skua makes up for it in sheer aggression towards other birds. Chilean Skuas have been known to fly in large groups and hunt other seabirds. They also eat offal, rodents and carrion.
Brown Skua - The Brown Skua , also known as the Antarctic Skua, Southern Great Skua, Southern Skua, or Hākoakoa , is a seabird that breeds in the sub-Antarctic and Antarctic zones and moves further north when not breeding. Its taxonomy is highly complex and a matter of dispute, with some splitting it into two or three species: Falkland Skua , Tristan Skua , and Subantarctic Skua . To further confuse, it hybridizes with both the South Polar and Chilean Skuas, and the entire group have been considered subspecies of the Great Skua, a species otherwise restricted to the Northern Hemisphere. It feeds on fish , small mammals, scraps, chicks, eggs and carrion.
South Polar Skua - The South Polar Skua is a large bird that can grow up to 53 cm in length. It breeds on Antarctic coasts, usually laying two eggs in November and December. Like other skuas, it will fly at the head of a human or other intruder approaching its nest. It is a migrant, wintering at sea in the Pacific Indian and Atlantic Oceans. In the eastern North Atlantic it is replaced by the Great Skua.
Catharacta skua - This is a large skua 50–58cm in length with a 125–140cm wingspan. Adults are streaked greyish brown, with a black cap, juveniles are a warmer brown and unstreaked below. Their tail is short and blunt. The flight is direct and powerful. This Skua's call is a harsh hah-hah-hah-hah; quacking and croaking noises have also been heard. Distinguishing this skua from the other North Atlantic skuas is relatively straightforward. The Herring Gull size, massive barrel chest and white wing flashes of this bird are distinctive even at a distance. It is sometimes said to give the impression of a Common Buzzard . Identification of this skua is only complicated when it is necessary to distinguish it from the closely related large southern-hemisphere skuas. Some authorities still regard the Great Skua as conspecific with some of these southern skuas, and as a group they have sometimes been separated in the genus Catharacta, although currently this is not commonly followed.