Red Phalarope

The Red Phalarope, known as the Grey Phalarope in much of the Old World for its plain nonbreeding plumage, is the most strikingly colored of the three phalarope species during the breeding season and the most committed to life on the open ocean the rest of the year.

Breeding females show rich brick-red underparts and neck, a bold white patch on the face, and a dark cap, with a yellow bill tipped in black — the most colorful of the phalaropes, as is typical of the females in this sex-role-reversed family. Males show a duller, more mottled version of the same pattern. Nonbreeding birds of both sexes are pale gray above and white below, much like the other phalaropes, and are frequently seen far from land.

Key field marks

• Brick-red underparts and neck with a bold white face patch in breeding female plumage
• Yellow bill with a black tip — a useful mark distinguishing it from the all-dark bills of the other phalaropes
• Thicker bill than Red-necked Phalarope
• Plain pale gray upperparts, white underparts in nonbreeding plumage
• Often encountered far offshore, sometimes in loose flocks

Similar species

• Red-necked Phalarope: smaller, thinner all-dark bill, rufous confined to a neck patch rather than covering the underparts in breeding plumage.
• Wilson's Phalarope: larger, longer-necked, needle-thin bill, breeds inland rather than on Arctic tundra, far less pelagic in winter.

Habitat

Red Phalaropes breed around shallow pools on Arctic tundra but spend the majority of the year far out at sea, often associated with areas of ocean upwelling where plankton and small invertebrates are abundant.

Range and migration

They breed in a circumpolar distribution across the high Arctic. Outside the breeding season, they are highly pelagic, wintering at sea off the coasts of South America, Africa, and other regions, occasionally being pushed toward shore during strong storms — an event birders call a "wreck."

Behavior

Red Phalaropes swim buoyantly and frequently spin in tight circles on the water surface to stir up prey, a behavior shared with the other phalarope species, and often forage in loose flocks over productive ocean waters.

Voice

Calls include a short, sharp "whit" or "kip," similar to calls of the other phalarope species, given both at breeding sites and occasionally at sea.

Feeding

They feed on small aquatic invertebrates and plankton, picked delicately from the water surface, often taking advantage of upwellings and prey concentrated near whales or other marine activity.

Nesting and breeding

As in the other phalaropes, sex roles are reversed: females are more brightly colored and compete for mates, then leave the male to incubate the eggs and raise the precocial young alone in a ground nest near Arctic tundra pools.