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Parasitic Jaeger

Status Uncommon transient, rare in summer. Reliable early records are few. There are two specimens in the American Museum of Natural History collected in 1894 and 1898 on Sable Island; one collected at Three Fathom Harbour, Halifax County, in late April or early May 1897 is in the Nova Scotia Museum; and one taken at Cape Sable on 30 April 1907 by Harold F. Tufts is in the National Museum of Canada. Allan Brooks collected five specimens off Brier Island on 28 September 1930. Parasitic Jaegers have been seen fairly regularly off Nova Scotia in recent years. The earliest spring record is off Yarmouth on 18 April 1983; however, most birds do not arrive until the second week in May or later. The northward migration of this species is largely completed by early June, but, like the Pomarine Jaeger, some spend the summer in our area. Fall migrants return during the last 10 days of August, and their passage continues until mid-October. Late stragglers have been observed on 3 November 1979, on the same date in 1983 and on 4 November 1982.

Description Length: 46-67 cm, including central tail feathers. Two colour morphs and many intermediate stages. All plumages: Central tail feathers project beyond the others a short distance and are pointed, not rounded and twisted; bill hooked; feet webbed. The colourations of the Parasitic Jaeger and the other two jaegers are distinguished only with difficulty. (See preceding species for general description.)

Range Circumpolar. Breeds in the Arctic across North America. Winters offshore from Maine to the east coast of South America, and to the west coast of Africa.