English: Pomarine Jaeger, Pomarine Skua       

Russian: Средний поморник

Mongolian: Бэсрэг хайлгана, Бэсрэг хулгайч цахлай

German: Spatelraubmowe

French: Labbe pomarin

Japanese: トウゾクカモメ (Tozoku-kamome)

Body length: 42-50 cm.
Wing span: 115-125 cm.

Breeds on arctic tundra; passes N and W Europe on migration, mostly in May and Oct-Nov, to and from winter areas e.g. off W Africa. Rare but regular on passage in Britain & Ireland. Usually seen singly or in small groups, sometimes very large parties (50+). Juveniles can be quite fearless.

Identification: In flight, appears definitely larger than Common Gull and slightly smaller than Herring Gull. On the ground surprisingly small, smallest birds appear hardly as big as Kittiwakes but always look heavy-crested. Long-winged; ‘arm’ rather broad, appears somewhat wider than distance from rear edge of wing to tip of tail (projections disregarded); ‘hand’ pointed, much as on Arctic Skua. Flight relaxed and steady, wingbeats measured and path more direct, light and jerky with energetic wingbeats as sometimes with Arctic. In all plumages, light primary patch above and below roughly as on Arctic and considerably less than on normal Great.

• Adult summer: Long and broad tail projections, look blunt-ended in profile (central tail-feathers twisted 90°; ‘carries a spoon’); moulted twice annually, Nov-Dec and Mar-Apr (and at other times very rarely broken off). Two morphs: light (commoner) has dark cap (reaches below gape), dark and coarse breast-band (on ♂ fairly often broken on centre of breast, and can be missing), insignificant or prominent barring of flanks, and extensive dark vent distinctly demarcated (element of light barring on many); dark morph is all dark (except for wing patches)
• Juvenile: Varying from mid brown with yellowish-buff bars, especially on rump and vent, to uniform dark blackish-brown, but almost always looks dark in the field. Told from similar juvenile Arctic Skua by calmer, more steady flight; broader ‘arm’; fuller belly; heavier bill being more noticeably pale blue-grey (readily visible at 300 m), tipped dark; light morph has pale ‘double patch’ on underwing, i. e. both primaries and primary-coverts basally light on most (hard to judge beyond 300 m); and blunt-ended, broad central tail-feathers which project only insignificantly, if at all. Juvenile practically never has strongly contrasting pale head or belly (cf. Arctic and Long-tailed). Darkest dark morphs unbarred like dark adult. 2nd cal.-year, light morph: Neck and belly paler, central tail-feathers shortish or half-length and not twisted. 3rd cal.-year, light morph: Neck and belly pale, dark cap beginning to show, but underwing-coverts still barred, not all dark as on adult.
• Adult winter, light morph: Similar to 3rd cal.-year, tail projection being half-length, but told by all dark, unbarred underwing-coverts.