Booby is any of seven large diving birds that live near warm oceans. The name booby comes from the Spanish word bobo, meaning stupid. Sailors gave boobies this name because the birds would land on ships and were easy to catch.
Boobies grow up to 2 to 3 feet (61 to 91 centimeters) long with wing spans of more than 51/2 feet (168 centimeters). They have a pointed tail; a long, sharp bill; and webbed feet. Most boobies are white and brown or white and black. Three species—the masked booby, the brown booby, and the red-footed booby—are found in warm seas worldwide. They are occasionally seen off the Gulf of Mexico and southern Atlantic coasts of the United States. The brown booby and another species, the blue-footed booby, sometimes appear off the coast of southern California.
Boobies eat chiefly flyingfish and squid, which they capture by diving into water from high in the air. Boobies live in flocks on remote islands and coastal cliffs. Depending on the species, they nest either on the ground or in trees and lay from one to four eggs at a time.
Red-footed booby
