Circumstances: This individual was found 8 November 2019. It was reportedly spotted by people participating in a field trip at the Greater Farallon National Marine Sanctuary offices and identified by Peter Winch, the visitors's center naturalist. Today was better light than when I first photographed it on 9 November.
Description: A smallish Sulid mostly dark borwn on upperparts and lower belly, but paler on head, neck and chest. Long cone-shaped bill was mostly pink with some dusky near the tip. Orbital was blue. Eye honey colored with black pupil. Dark red legs very short and feet fully webbed. Tail long and pointed, heavily worn and ragged. It appears to molting primaries. Bird preened extensively.
Discussion: Previous specimen records from California refer to the small dark race S. s. websteri of the Eastern tropical pacific.
Digiscoped with Panasonic DMC-LX5 | Nikon FieldScope III | 30XWA | hand-held (no adapter).
References:
Carboneras, C., Christie, D.A., Jutglar, F., Garcia, E.F.J. & Kirwan, G.M. (2019). Red-footed Booby (Sula sula). In: del Hoyo, J., Elliott, A., Sargatal, J., Christie, D.A. & de Juana, E. (eds.). Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona. (retrieved from https://www.hbw.com/node/52624 on 10 November 2019).
California Bird Records Committee [CBRC] (R. A. Hamilton, M. A. Patten, and R. A. Erickson, eds.). 2007. Rare Birds of California, Western Field Ornithologists, Camarillo, CA.
Howell, S. N. G. (2010) Molt in North American Birds. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, Boston & New York.
Howell, S.N.G., Lewington, I. & Russell, W. (2014) Rare Birds of North America. Princeton Univ. Press
Howell, S. N. G. and K. Zufelt (2019) Oceanic Birds of the World: A Photo Guide. Princeton Univ. Press.