Red-tailed Tropicbird
Phaethon rubricauda
Tropicbirds (Phaethontidae) · Phaethontiformes · Tropicbirds
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How to identify Red-tailed Tropicbird
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Often mixed up with
In quizzes, players most often confuse Red-tailed Tropicbird with these birds—either this species was picked by mistake, or the other way around.
| Species | Mix-ups |
|---|---|
| White-tailed Tropicbird Phaethon lepturus | 13 |
| Red-billed Tropicbird Phaethon aethereus | 9 |
| Great Crested Tern Thalasseus bergii | 2 |
| Red-throated Diver Gavia stellata | 2 |
| Knob-billed Duck Sarkidiornis melanotos | 1 |
Family
Tropicbirds are a family, Phaethontidae, of tropical pelagic seabirds. They are the sole living representatives of the order Phaethontiformes. For many years, they were considered part of the Pelecaniformes, but genetics indicate they are most closely related to the Eurypygiformes.
Order
The Phaethontiformes are an order of birds. They contain one extant family, the tropicbirds (Phaethontidae), and one extinct family Prophaethontidae from the early Cenozoic. Several fossil genera have been described, with well-preserved fossils known as early as the Paleocene.