Gould observed that 'Like all the other species of the genus, the Pomatorhinus Skua is an inhabitant of the colder parts of the world. Its limits northward may be said to extend as far as our geographical knowledge goes.'

In Britain, it was only an occasional straggler, wandering far from the sea into inland counties.

The illustration depicts a light-phased adult in front and a young bird, but Gould admitted that he found the differences in plumage of these skuas most perplexing.

DISTRIBUTION: Breeding distribution circumpolar in northern Eurasia and northern North America. Winters at sea in southern oceans north to Hawaiian islands and southern United States. In Britain small numbers regularly recorded off coasts