DRY TORTUGAS – Seabird Specialties

The Dry Tortugas is a premier North American birding destination to witness the spectacle of tropical seabirds. During our 3 day spring tour to these beautiful islands, we enjoy a variety of specialties including five species that nest only in this location within the United States.

BRIDLED TERN  Onychoprion anaethetus

• often found feeding along sargassum mats
• birds at sea may land on flotsam and jetsam
• only place they nest in the US is on Bush Key, in early summer
• first began nesting in Dry Tortugas after 2005 hurricane season

AUDUBON’S SHEARWATER  Puffinus therminieri

• small, about 12″, tropical shearwater
• often seen in flocks in the warmer waters of the Gulf Stream
• best looked for foraging around sargassum
• nests in burrows on small islands in the Caribbean

ROSEATE TERN  Sterna dougallii

• often seen resting on markers and buoys
• at rest, tails of adults extend well beyond the wing tip
• plunge dives from a greater height than other terns
• a few pairs nest on Bush Key in early summer

BROWN BOOBY  Sula leucogaster

• usually seen in small groups on markers on the way to the Dry Tortugas
• look for the clean demarcation between breast and underparts
• plunge dives from 20-50′, feeding mainly on flying fish and squid
• breeds in the Caribbean

MASKED BOOBY  Sula dactylatra

• only place in the US that it nests is on Hospital Key
• first nested in 1984, now about 20 pairs breed
• largest and least common of the tropical boobies
• upon greeting each other females squawk, and males whistle

BROWN NODDY  Anous stolidus

• only nest colony in continuous US is on Bush Key
• about 2500 pairs nest, creating loose twig platforms low in bushes
• largest and most abundant of the noddies
• seen close perched on the North Coaling Dock

BLACK NODDY  Anous minutus

• only place in the contiguous US to see it
• usually one immature present each spring, first seen in 1960
• best seen on Bush Key or North Coaling Dock
• rare in North Atlantic, with only a few pairs breeding in West Indies

SOOTY TERN  Onychoprion fuscatus

• most numerous bird in the Dry Tortugas, 80,000 nest annually on Bush Key
• only nesting colony in the United States
• highly pelagic and don’t land on water
• once fledged they spend 5 years on the wing before returning to breed

Join us for a Dry Tortugas Seabirds and Spring Migration tour!