Diet

• Primarily small schooling fish, including anchovies, sardines, silversides, and juvenile herrings.

• Also feeds on squid, shrimp, and other small marine invertebrates.

• Hunts by flying over coastal waters before making shallow plunge-dives to capture prey just below the surface.

• Often feeds in flocks, sometimes in association with dolphins, tuna, pelicans, and other seabirds that drive fish toward the surface.

Range

• Breeds mainly on islands in the Gulf of California and along the Pacific coast of Baja California, with smaller colonies elsewhere on the Pacific coast.

• After breeding, disperses along the Pacific coast of North America from California south through Mexico, Central America, and occasionally to Peru and Chile.

• A common coastal species in the Zihuatanejo region, especially from late summer through spring.

• Inhabits coastal waters, beaches, estuaries, bays, lagoons, harbours, and offshore islands.

Male / Female

• Male: Pale grey upperparts, white underparts, shaggy black breeding crest, long slender orange-yellow bill, and black legs. Slightly larger with a longer bill.

• Female: Similar in plumage but generally smaller with a shorter, slightly finer bill.

• Non-breeding adults: The black crest is reduced, and the forehead becomes white while retaining the shaggy rear crest.

• Juveniles: Similar to non-breeding adults but with mottled gray-brown markings on the wings and back.

• Sexes cannot be reliably distinguished in the field except by subtle size and bill differences.

Size

• Length: 39–43 cm (15.4–17.0 in)

• Wingspan: 76–86 cm (30–34 in)

• Weight: 260–340 g (9.2–12.0 oz)