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Great Skua gallery
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Records through the year
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Distribution
Great Skua   Stercorarius skua
This species is relatively new to the fauna of Svalbard, where the first breeding record on Spitsbergen was made in 1976 and on Bjørnøya in 1970. Now the Great Skua is found scattered over the whole island group. In some areas it is more numerous, usually in the neighbourhood of large bird cliffs. It behaves as a typical bird of prey that lives on other seabirds. The breeding population is increasing and now numbers more than 600 pairs.

Features: 50-58 cm, 1,1-1,8 kg. ♂=♀. The young resemble the adults, but are more evenly coloured, lack the speckled pattern, often have less white in the wing patches and lack the slightly projecting central tail feathers. On the breeding grounds can often be heard a short coarse «gokk» that is repeated. Also gives loud calls during courtship and display flight.


Breeding: Nests on flat ground, often on moss-covered terrain out on islands or on flat ground not far from bird cliffs. Solitary breeding pairs seem to be more seldom than scattered gatherings, where several pairs nest in an area. Normally lays two brown eggs in a deep nest hollow of moss.


Recent observations
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  • Home
  • Hjem
  • Bird observations
    • Recent photos
  • Species
    • Regular breeding birds >
      • Brent Goose
      • Barnacle Goose
      • Pink-footed Goose
      • King Eider
      • Common Eider
      • Long-tailed Duck
      • Svalbard Rock Ptarmigan
      • Ringed Plover
      • Ruddy Turnstone
      • Dunlin
      • Purple Sandpiper
      • Grey Phalarope
      • Black-legged Kittiwake
      • Ivory Gull
      • Great Black-backed Gull
      • Glaucous Gull
      • Arctic Tern
      • Great Skua
      • Arctic Skua
      • Little Auk
      • Brünnich's Guillemot
      • Common Guillemot
      • Razorbill
      • Black Guillemot
      • Atlantic Puffin
      • Red-throated Diver
      • Northern Fulmar
      • Snow Bunting
    • Scarce breeding birds >
      • Northern Pintail
      • Common Teal
      • Common Scoter
      • European Golden Plover
      • Red Knot
      • Sanderling
      • Red-necked Phalarope
      • Sabine's Gull
      • Common Gull
      • European Herring Gull
      • Lesser Black-backed Gull
      • Long-tailed Skua
      • Great Northern Diver
      • Northern Gannet
      • Redwing
      • Northern Wheatear
      • Meadow Pipit
      • Lapland Bunting
    • Annual non-breeders >
      • Canada Goose
      • Cackling Goose
      • Snow Goose
      • Greylag Goose
      • Bean Goose
      • Greater White-fronted Goose
      • Whooper Swan
      • Eurasian Wigeon
      • Mallard
      • Tufted Duck
      • Steller's Eider
      • Common Goldeneye
      • Red-breasted Merganser
      • Eurasian Oystercatcher
      • Whimbrel
      • Pectoral Sandpiper
      • Common Snipe
      • Common Redshank
      • Black-headed Gull
      • Ross's Gull
      • Iceland Gull
      • Pomarine Skua
      • Snowy Owl
      • Gyrfalcon
      • Bohemian Waxwing
      • Barn Swallow
      • Song Trush
      • Common Blackbird
      • Fieldfare
      • White Wagtail
      • Common Redpoll
      • Arctic Redpoll
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