Bird Album
Black Noddy
Anous minutus Boie, F, 1844
35–37 cmLength69 cmWingspan112 gWeight
It is a black-feathered bird with what looks like a white cap.
Most records: Palau, U.S. Outlying Islands, Norfolk Island
How to identify
Field marks
- Crown pale; body feathers dark
- White crescent below the eye and white spot above it
- Bill black, pointed and sharp
- Wings long and tapering; tail tip square-cut
Where and when it's recorded
Black Noddy has been recorded at 149 of the 8,171 birding hotspots we track, in 30 countries and regions.
Records by month Northern Hemisphere
Where it's recorded most
- Midway Atoll NWR – Sand IslandU.S. Outlying Islands515 records
- Norfolk Island – Phillip IslandNorfolk Island229 records
- Norfolk Island National Park – Captain Cook MemorialNorfolk Island196 records
More places
- TetiaroaFrench Polynesia192 records
- Long Island Park & Conservation AreaPalau186 records
- Midway Atoll – Water Catchment AreaU.S. Outlying Islands148 records
- Hundred Acres ReserveNorfolk Island141 records
- Ngchus St.2Palau138 records
- Euidelchol St.1Palau120 records
- Midway Atoll NWR – Eastern IslandU.S. Outlying Islands107 records
Countries and regions with the most records
eBird records via GBIF up to 2024-12-31. A record means someone listed it; more records partly mean more birders, not more birds.
About
The black noddy (Anous minutus), also known as white-capped noddy, is a species of tern in the family Laridae.
Excerpt from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0 · authors · Read more on Wikipedia
Questions
How big is the Black Noddy?
The Black Noddy is about 35–37 cm long, with a wingspan of 69 cm and weighs around 112 g.
Where does the Black Noddy live?
Its breeding range: Pacific Ocean, Atlantic Ocean: tropical and subtropical Pacific and Atlantic oceans, very locally northeastern Indian and Caribbean Sea. It is most often recorded in Palau, U.S. Outlying Islands and Norfolk Island.
Is the Black Noddy endangered?
The IUCN Red List classifies the Black Noddy as Least Concern.
What does the Black Noddy eat?
Main food: Fish, shrimp & shellfish.
What family is the Black Noddy in?
It belongs to the family Gulls, Terns, Skimmers (Laridae), order Charadriiformes.
At a glance
- Length
- 35–37 cm
- Wingspan
- 69 cm
- Weight
- 112 g
- Habitat
- Ocean
- Diet
- Fish, shrimp & shellfish
- Lifestyle
- Feeds in the air
- Migration
- Partial migrant
- Conservation
- Least Concern
More measurements
- Wing
- 222 mm
- Tail
- 114 mm
- Bill
- 50 mm
- Tarsus
- 22 mm
Averages from the AVONET dataset; length from field guides where available.
Range
Pacific Ocean, Atlantic Ocean: tropical and subtropical Pacific and Atlantic oceans, very locally northeastern Indian and Caribbean Sea
Breeding range, IOC World Bird List 15.2
Classification
- Order
- Charadriiformes
- Family
- Gulls, Terns, Skimmers Laridae
- Genus
- Anous
Other birds in the genus Anous
Brown NoddyAnous stolidus
Lesser NoddyAnous tenuirostris
Grey NoddyAnous albivitta
Blue NoddyAnous ceruleus
African SkimmerRynchops flavirostris
Indian SkimmerRynchops albicollis
Black SkimmerRynchops niger
Atlantic White TernGygis alba
Little White TernGygis microrhyncha
Aleutian TernOnychoprion aleuticus
Download illustration
Free to use with credit: “Illustration: Bird Album (birdalbum.com)”. Drawn by AI from a reference photo by Christian Reynolds. ↗
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