Habitat
Black Noddies occur on and around oceanic and nearshore islands in warm tropical and subtropical waters in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic Oceans (including the Caribbean Sea). Nesting islands range from low, sandy atolls to high, rocky islands. In the Hawaiian Islands, Atlantic Ocean nesting colonies, and some other sites, Black Noddies nest only on cliff and cave ledges, but in Australia and many Pacific Ocean colonies, they nest in trees and shrubs. Outside of the breeding season, these terns typically remain close to nesting or roosting islands, where they forage near shore.
Back to topFood
Black Noddies feed almost entirely on small fish and squid. They typically forage in large flocks that congregate over schools of predatory fish. These fish may help drive noddies’ preferred small prey fish to the surface. Unlike most temperate terns (e.g. Common Tern), Black Noddies do not plunge-dive to catch food. Instead, they pluck prey from at or near the ocean surface while remaining in flight, or by briefly touching down on the water, bill-first, before quickly taking flight again.
Back to topNesting
Nest Placement
Placed in trees and shrubs (typically in forks or along larger horizontal branches) or on ledges of cliffs and sea caves. Arboreal nests are started by draping nesting material over limbs, resulting in a ragged appearance.
Nest Description
A bulky, messy structure held together with large amounts of guano. Nesting material varies by location and includes old leaves, grasses, twigs, stems, seaweed, and feathers.
Nesting Facts
| Egg Description: | Nearly pure white to reddish buff, with irregular brownish spots and streaks. |
Behavior
Black Noddies are highly social birds. They often forage in large multispecies flocks—numbering hundreds to a few thousand birds—with shearwaters and other terns. Black Noddies nest in dense colonies that often have thousands or tens of thousands of individuals. Pairs are monogamous and usually keep the same mate in successive breeding seasons. The male gathers nesting material and the female performs most of the nest building. Both sexes incubate the single egg and brood and feed the chick. The chick fledges after 39–52 days and may be fed by the adults for an additional 11–17 weeks.
Back to topConservation
The International Union for Conservation of Nature lists Black Noddy's conservation status as Least Concern and estimates the global population size at 1.3 million mature individuals.
Back to topCredits
BirdLife International. 2020. Anous minutus. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2020: e.T22694799A163885644. https://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2020-3.RLTS.T22694799A163885644.en.
Floyd, T. (2025). Field Guide to the Birds of the United States and Canada. Eighth edition. National Geographic Society, Washington, D.C.
Gauger, V. H. (2020). Black Noddy (Anous minutus), version 1.0. In Birds of the World (S. M. Billerman, Editor). Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, NY, USA. https://doi.org/10.2173/bow.blknod.01