Phaethon lepturus ascensionis is the ssp. that can be found in Noronha.
Known locally as "rabo-de-junco" and also known in Brazil as "rabo-de-palha".
The three species of seabirds in the genus Phaethon are classified in the family Phaethontidae, which is monotypic within the order Phaethontiformes. Their relationship to other living birds is unclear, and they probably have no close relatives.
widespread all tropical oceans (except e Pacific and ne Atlantic)
Nonbreeding Range Subregions
pelagic; to waters off e Africa, w, s Sri Lanka (w, n Indian Ocean), Indonesian Arch. and New Guinea waters, ec Australia (sw South Pacific) and Gulf Stream n to North Carolina (w North Atlantic)
American Samoa,Anguilla,Antigua and Barbuda,Australia,Bahamas,Barbados,Bermuda,Brazil,British Virgin Islands,Cape Verde, Cayman Islands,China,Colombia,Comoros,Cook Islands,Cuba,Dominica,Dominican Republic,Equatorial Guinea,French Guiana, French Polynesia,Gabon,Ghana,Grenada,Guam,Guyana,Haiti,India - mainland,Indonesia,Jamaica, Japan,Kenya,Kiribati,Liberia,Madagascar,Maldives,Marshall Islands,Mauritius,Micronesia,Montserrat, Mozambique,Nauru,Netherlands Antilles,New Caledonia,Nigeria,Niue,Northern Mariana Islands,Palau,Papua New Guinea,Pitcairn Islands, Puerto Rico,Reunion,Saint Kitts and Nevis,Saint Lucia,Saint Vincent and the Grenadines,Samoa,Sao Tome and Principe,Seychelles,Sri Lanka,Suriname, Tanzania,Thailand,Tokelau,Tonga,Trinidad and Tobago,Turkey,Turks and Caicos Islands,Tuvalu,United States - Hawaii,United States - mainland, Vanuatu,Venezuela,Virgin Islands,Yemen,
IOC 13.1 Subspecies
Group
Subspecies
Breeding Range
catesbyi
Bermuda and Bahamas, Greater Antilles, Virgin Is. and Lesser Antilles
ascensionis
islands of tropical South Atlantic: Fernando de Noronha (ne of ne Brazil) and Ascension I. (sc South Atlantic)
lepturus
tropical Indian Ocean: Comoros, n, nw Madagascar, Inner Is. (ne Seychelles), Mascarenes (w Indian Ocean); Chagos Arch., Maldives (nc Indian Ocean), Cocos (Keeling) I. (e Indian Ocean), se Java to Lombok (w Lesser Sundas) and Ashmore Reef (nw of Australia)
europae
Europa (w of s Madagascar, Mozambique Channel)
fulvus
Christmas I. (s of w Java)
dorotheae
tropical w Pacific: remote islets of Melanesia, Northern Mariana Is. s to Palau (w Caroline Is., sw Micronesia) and all Polynesian groups e to Easter I. (=Eastern group, e Polynesia) and n to Midway I. (Northwestern Hawaiian Is.) and main Hawaiian is.
Africa (entire continent rather than south of Sahara)
AN
Antarctica
AO
Atlantic Ocean
AU
Australasia (Wallacea (Indonesian islands east of Wallace's line), New Guinea and its islands, Australia, New Zealand and its subantarctic islands, the Solomons, New Caledonia, and Vanuatu)
PAL
Eurasia (Europe, Asia from the Middle East through central Asia north of the Himalayas, Siberia and northern China to Japan)
IO
Indian Ocean
LA
Latin America (Middle and South America)
MA
Middle America (Mexico through Panama)
NA
North America (includes the Caribbean)
NO
Northern oceans
OR
Oriental Region (South Asia from Pakistan to Taiwan, plus Southeast Asia, the Philippines, and Greater Sundas)
