Stercorariidae
7 species
The skuas are a group of predatory seabirds with seven species forming the genus Stercorarius, the only genus in the family Stercorariidae. The three smaller skuas, the long-tailed jaeger, the parasitic jaeger, and the pomarine jaeger are called jaegers in American English. also spelled Yeager in some translations.
The English word "skua" comes from the Faroese name for the great skua, skúgvur, with the island of Skúvoy renowned for its colony of that bird. The general Faroese term for skuas is kjógvi. The word "jaeger" is derived from the German word Jäger, meaning "hunter". The genus name Stercorarius is Latin and means "of dung"; because the food disgorged by other birds when pursued by skuas was once thought to be excrement.
Skuas nest on the ground in temperate and Arctic regions, and are long-distance migrants. They have even been sighted at the South Pole.
The skuas are a group of predatory seabirds with seven species forming the genus Stercorarius, the only genus in the family Stercorariidae. The three smaller skuas, the long-tailed jaeger, the parasitic jaeger, and the pomarine jaeger are called jaegers in American English. also spelled Yeager in some translations.
The English word "skua" comes from the Faroese name for the great skua, skúgvur, with the island of Skúvoy renowned for its colony of that bird. The general Faroese term for skuas is kjógvi. The word "jaeger" is derived from the German word Jäger, meaning "hunter". The genus name Stercorarius is Latin and means "of dung"; because the food disgorged by other birds when pursued by skuas was once thought to be excrement.
Skuas nest on the ground in temperate and Arctic regions, and are long-distance migrants. They have even been sighted at the South Pole.
