Description

The white-tailed tropicbird (Phaethon lepturus), also known as the yellow-billed tropicbird, is the smallest of three closely related seabirds in the tropical oceans and the order Phaethontiformes. Found in the tropical Atlantic, western Pacific, and Indian Oceans, it breeds on some Caribbean islands, including Bermuda, where it is known as a "longtail." Described by French zoologist François Marie Daudin in 1802, this bird's closest relative is the red-tailed tropicbird. The adult white-tailed tropicbird, 71–80 cm long with a wingspan of 89–96 cm, is slender and mainly white, with distinctive black markings and an orange-yellow to orange-red bill. It breeds on tropical islands, laying a single egg on the ground or cliff ledge, and feeds on fish and squid. The call is a high-pitched "keee-keee-krrrt-krrt-krrt." Breeding frequency varies based on climate and site availability, with reproduction occurring 10 months after a successful breeding or 5 months after an unsuccessful attempt.