’cause I know you wanted to know…


Boobies live off the western coasts of Central and South America. The name ‘boobies’ is thought to come from the word ‘bobo’, which is Spanish for stupid. Probably because the Spanish explorers had some laughs about how clumsy, awkward, and completely unwary of humans (see ridiculous ‘I do-not-give-a-crap’ expression above) these birds are. Plus the blue feet. They’re like the birthday clowns of the bird world.

The blue feet are used during the mating rituals of these crazies—the better the male’s blue coloring, the more the female wants to get it onnnn. This is because the blue color comes from carotenoid pigments the male ingests through his diet, mainly antioxidants and immune boosters. That means that the more blue, the healthier the bird, and also demonstrates that he’s a capable food-gatherer. A booby with really blue feet is like a man wearing a sign that says ‘I am super fit and can provide for myself and others, come have sex with me’. For real.

The feet are also so big and weird-looking because they can be used to cover, protect, and warm the eggs. Like little blue egg-umbrellas.