Phaethontes

The suborder Phaethontes includes three species of seabirds known as tropic birds. These birds are easily identified by their long, streaming central tail feathers, which can be as long as their bodies. They have satiny white plumage, often with pink or orange tinges, and distinctive black markings across their eyes and on their wings. Tropic birds inhabit island colonies, typically nesting on cliffs, and feed on fish and squid by plunge-diving. They lay a single, speckled egg that is incubated by both parents for about a month, with chicks fledging approximately ten weeks later. The largest species is the red-tailed tropic bird. While historically classified within the order Pelecaniformes, genetic analysis suggests they may belong to their own order, Phaethontiformes.12