The healthiest Blue-Footed Booby chicks are typically sired by fathers with brighter blue feet. Female bird’s are more attracted to male birds with bluer feet, and male birds seek out partners with similar traits. During the breeding season, both sexes display their feet to each other as part of courtship. The nest is usually built within the male bird’s territory.

Art and fact by Cloude Shao, Instagram @cloude_paint

[Edited by Nicole Rodrigues]

Reference:

Cornell Lab of Ornithology. (n.d.). Blue-footed Booby. All About Birds. Retrieved January 3, 2025, from https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Blue-footed_Booby