Great skua
Stercorarius skua (Brünnich, 1764)
The great skua (Stercorarius skua), also called the Bonxie, Brown skua or Northern skua, is a bird in the family Stercorariidae and the order Charadriiformes. It is a medium-sized bird with an adult body mass of 1.5 kg (from 1.34 to 1.94 kg) and a wingspan of 1.36 m.
Quick facts about the great skua
The great skua is a migratory, aerial carnivore of marine habitats, classed as an aquatic predator. It lays 2 eggs per clutch, one clutch per year, incubates them for 29 days, and reaches sexual maturity at 5 to 6 years; it is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List.
- Weight
- 1.34 kg – 1.94 kgsrc for Weight
- Length
- Not recorded
- Wingspan
- 1.36 msrc for Wingspan
- Lifespan
- 32.9 yearssrc for Lifespan
- Diet
- Aquatic predatorsrc for Diet
- Longest recorded lifespan
- 34.5 years
- Main food
- Not recorded
- Habitat
- marinesrc for Habitat
- Egg incubation
- 29 dayssrc for Egg incubation
- Young per litter or clutch
- 2src for Young per litter or clutch
- Age at maturity
- 4.99 years – 6 yearssrc for Age at maturity
- Litters or clutches a year
- 1src for Litters or clutches a year
- Lifestyle
- Aerialsrc for Lifestyle
- Migration
- Migratorysrc for Migration
- Conservation status
- Least Concern (IUCN)src for Conservation status
- Countries on record
- Not recorded
How big is the great skua?
Photos of the great skua
Only freely licensed photos are shown. Each carries its creator and licence.
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Where does the great skua live?
Not recorded
What is the great skua?
The great skua (Stercorarius skua), sometimes known by the name bonxie in Britain, is a large seabird in the skua family Stercorariidae. It is roughly the size of a herring gull. It mainly eats fish caught at the sea surface or taken from other birds.
From the Wikipedia article “Great skua” (en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Great_skua&oldid=1361551267), by Wikipedia contributors, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0). This block is kept separate from our own text.
Is the great skua endangered?
The great skua is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List: it is not currently at risk of extinction.
- LCLeast Concern
- NTNear Threatened
- VUVulnerable
- ENEndangered
- CRCritically Endangered
- EWExtinct in the Wild
- EXExtinct
Category via Wikidata (CC0). Find the full assessment on the IUCN Red List. See all Least Concern species.
How is the great skua classified?
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- classAves
- orderCharadriiformes
- familyStercorariidae
- genusStercorarius
- SpeciesStercorarius skua (Brünnich, 1764)
Synonyms Buphaga skua, Cataracta fusca, Cataractes skua, Catarracta skua, Catarractes fusca, Catarractes skua, Catarractes vulgaris, Catharacta skua, Catharacta skua skua, Larus catarractes, Larus fuscus, Larus keeask, Lestris catarractes, Lestris skua, Megalestris skua, Stercocarius skua, Stercorarius cataractes, Stercorarius skua skua, Stercorarius skua skua
Other names and names in other languages (87)
- BonxieEnglish
- Brown skuaEnglish
- Northern skuaEnglish
- SuidpoolroofmeeuAfrikaans
- كركر كبيرArabic
- CágaluAsturian
- Böyük sahilqağayısıAzerbaijani
- Вялікі паморнікBelarusian
- Паморнік вялікіBelarusian
- Голям морелетникBulgarian
- Sparfell-vor vrasBreton
- paràsit borealCatalan
- chaluha velkáCzech
- Sgiwen FawrWelsh
- Sgiwennod MawrWelsh
- mtorkjoveDanish
- StorkjoveDanish
- SkuaGerman
- große RaubmöweGerman
- grosse Raul MöweGerman
- ΑετοληστόγλαροςGreek
- ΤρανοληστόγλαροςGreek
- granda rabmevoEsperanto
- Págalo grandeSpanish
- suurännEstonian
- Marikoi handiaBasque
- Marikaka handiaBasque
- قاپوی بزرگPersian
- isokihuFinnish
- SkúgvurFaroese
- Grand LabbeFrench
- grande labbeFrench
- stercoraire brunFrench
- grutte skraitsWestern Frisian
- tuilleagScottish Gaelic
- fasgadair mòrScottish Gaelic
- Fàsgadair mòrScottish Gaelic
- fasgadairean mòraScottish Gaelic
- meirleach mórScottish Gaelic
- tuilleaganScottish Gaelic
- Palleira grandeGalician
- Maarliagh mooarManx
- Maarliagh MarreyManx
- חמסן גדולHebrew
- szkuaHungarian
- nagy halfarkasHungarian
- SkúmurIcelandic
- skùmurIcelandic
- Stercorario maggioreItalian
- オオトウゾクカモメJapanese
- キタオオトウゾクカモメJapanese
- დიდი თოლია-მეკობრეGeorgian
- isunngarujussuaqKalaallisut
- didysis plėšikasLithuanian
- lielā klijkaijaLatvian
- Ċiefa KbiraMaltese
- Łóóʼyiniʼįįhí ntsaaígííNavajo
- Groten SchietjagerLow German
- grote jagerDutch
- storjoNorwegian Nynorsk
- Saltadó GrandiPapiamento
- Mauve poulePicard
- wydrzyk wielkiPolish
- وڈا سکواWestern Panjabi
- alcaidePortuguese
- Alcaide do NortePortuguese
- alcaide-do-nortePortuguese
- mandrião-grandePortuguese
- moleiro-grandePortuguese
- Muetta grondaRomansh
- Lup de mare atlanticRomanian
- Большой поморникRussian
- СкуаRusyn
- ÁhpeháskilNorthern Sami
- stuoraháskilNorthern Sami
- StuorraskáitiNorthern Sami
- pomorník veľkýSlovak
- velika govnačkaSlovenian
- pulëzeza e madheAlbanian
- Велики поморникSerbian
- Veliki pomornikSerbian
- storlabbSwedish
- buyuk korsan martiTurkish
- büyük korsan martıTurkish
- Поморник великийUkrainian
- 北贼鸥Chinese
- 大賊鷗Chinese
Catalogue of LifeWikipediaiNaturalistTAXREFWikidataWoRMSIUCN Red List
Relatives of the great skua
Other species in the same genus Stercorarius.
Parasitic jaeger
Stercorarius parasiticus
Pomarine jaeger
Stercorarius pomarinus
Long-tailed jaeger
Stercorarius longicaudus
South polar skua
Stercorarius maccormicki
Brown skua
Stercorarius antarcticus
Chilean skua
Stercorarius chilensis
CompareGreat skua vs Parasitic jaegerGreat skua vs Pomarine jaegerGreat skua vs Long-tailed jaegerGreat skua vs South polar skua
Common questions
Each answer is written from the sourced facts on this page, and only where they hold the answer.
What kind of animal is the great skua?
The great skua is a bird in the family Stercorariidae, order Charadriiformes. It is also called the Bonxie, Brown skua or Northern skua.
How heavy is the great skua?
An adult Great skua weighs 1.5 kg, with reported values from 1.34 to 1.94 kg. Its wingspan is 1.36 m.
What does the great skua eat?
The great skua is an aquatic predator and a carnivore.
Is the great skua endangered?
No. The great skua is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List, which is not a threatened category.
How long does the great skua live?
The great skua has a lifespan of 32.9 years, with values up to 34.5 years reported.
How many eggs does the great skua lay?
The great skua lays 2 eggs per clutch and has 1 clutch per year. The eggs are incubated for 29 days.
Does the great skua migrate?
Yes, the great skua is migratory. It lives in marine habitats and forages in the air.
Who named the great skua?
The great skua, Stercorarius skua, was named by (Brünnich, 1764).
Sources and how to cite this page
Data as of 2026-11-11. How this page is put together.
- An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles · CC0 1.0 · E096-269
Myhrvold, N.P., Baldridge, E., Chan, B., Sivam, D., Freeman, D.L. & Ernest, S.K.M. (2015) An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles. Ecology 96: 3109. https://doi.org/10.1890/15-0846R.1. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1 - AVONET: morphological, ecological and geographical data for all birds · CC BY 4.0 · v7
Tobias, J.A. et al. (2022) AVONET: morphological, ecological and geographical data for all birds. Ecology Letters 25: 581–597. https://doi.org/10.1111/ele.13898. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.16586228.v7 - Catalogue of Life eXtended Release · CC BY 4.0 · 2026-10-16 XR
Catalogue of Life (2026). Catalogue of Life eXtended Release, version 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.48580/dgzlf - Wikimedia Commons · per file (CC0 / public domain / CC BY green, CC BY-SA amber, anything else not displayed) · 2026-11-11
Wikimedia Commons contributors. Wikimedia Commons. https://commons.wikimedia.org (each file credited to its author under its own licence). - Wikidata · CC0 1.0 · 2026-11-11
Wikidata contributors. Wikidata. https://www.wikidata.org (data retrieved via the Wikidata Query Service). - Wikipedia (English) · CC BY-SA 4.0 · 2026-11-11
Wikipedia contributors. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. https://en.wikipedia.org (text under CC BY-SA 4.0; each block names its article and revision).
Embed a card for this animal on your own site
Copy this code. The card shows the photo with its credit, key facts and a link back to this page.
CreatureData. (2026). Great skua (Stercorarius skua). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/great-skua
“Great skua (Stercorarius skua).” CreatureData, 2026, https://creaturedata.com/animals/great-skua.
@misc{great_skua_2026,
title = {Great skua (Stercorarius skua)},
author = {{CreatureData}},
year = {2026},
url = {https://creaturedata.com/animals/great-skua},
note = {Data as of 2026-11-11}
}