: any of various seabirds (genus Catharacta) related to the jaegers: such as
a
b
: a bird (C. maccormicki) that resembles but is slightly smaller than the great skua and that breeds in the Antarctic
Examples of skua in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
The virus was found in populations of a scavenging bird called brown skua on Bird Island, which is part of the British overseas territory of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands.
—
WIRED, 28 Oct. 2023
That’s the normal timeline of events for birds like the Antarctic petrel, the snow petrel and the south polar skua.
—Sarah Kuta, Smithsonian Magazine, 23 Mar. 2023
The hākoakoa, or subantarctic skua, is the bird equivalent of a pirate, Rykers said.
—María Luisa Paúl, Washington Post, 17 Oct. 2022
Modest numbers of Cory’s, great, sooty, and Manx shearwaters were spotted at Race Point in Provincetown, where a South Polar skua, two parasitic jaegers, and 300 roseate terns were also observed.
—BostonGlobe.com, 14 Aug. 2021
The rats—brought to the island by whalers and sealers as early as the late 18th century—ate the eggs and vulnerable chicks of seabirds, including albatrosses, skua, terns, and petrels.
—National Geographic, 9 May 2018
WIRED, 28 Oct. 2023
That’s the normal timeline of events for birds like the Antarctic petrel, the snow petrel and the south polar skua.
—Sarah Kuta, Smithsonian Magazine, 23 Mar. 2023
The hākoakoa, or subantarctic skua, is the bird equivalent of a pirate, Rykers said.
—María Luisa Paúl, Washington Post, 17 Oct. 2022
Modest numbers of Cory’s, great, sooty, and Manx shearwaters were spotted at Race Point in Provincetown, where a South Polar skua, two parasitic jaegers, and 300 roseate terns were also observed.
—BostonGlobe.com, 14 Aug. 2021
The rats—brought to the island by whalers and sealers as early as the late 18th century—ate the eggs and vulnerable chicks of seabirds, including albatrosses, skua, terns, and petrels.
—National Geographic, 9 May 2018
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'skua.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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Cite this Entry
“Skua.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/skua. Accessed 19 Apr. 2024.
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