After departing from Panama we headed north along the Central American coast heading towards Guatemala. We had seen Masked Boobies off the Atlantic coast of Florida, but in this area of the Pacific they are replaced by the similar looking Nazca Booby. A few years ago, it was still a sub species of Masked but now it is a species in its own right. The main breeding population is situated on the Galapagos Islands, with smaller populations on Islands off Colombia, Ecuador and Peru. I have included a few images of Atlantic Masked Boobies at the bottom for comparison. Masked having a yellow eye and a yellow/horn coloured bill, Nazca have orange eyes and an orange/red bill. Most Nazca Boobies also show white in the central tail feathers, although not always easy to see.
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| Nazca Booby |
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| Nazca Booby |
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| Nazca Booby |
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| Nazca Booby |
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| Nazca Booby |
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| Nazca Booby |
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| Nazca Booby |
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| Masked Booby |
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| Nazca Booby |
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| Masked Booby |
Steve C
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