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Payanke - what does it mean?

White-tailed Tropicbird

Payanke is the creole name for the Tropicbird.

The name literally means 'straw in tail' (think of a phonetic spelling of the French paille en queue) and is a reference to the prominent tail streamers of the adult birds. These birds feature in the gallery and provide the distinctive name for the site.

Red-billed Tropicbird

Three species of these birds exist, all of which can be seen in Seychelles. By far the most common is the White-tailed Tropicbird (Payanke Lake Blan, Phaethon lepturus).

The Red-tailed Tropicbird (Payanke Lake Rouz, Phaethon rubricauda) is much less common and is not yet featured in the gallery. The third species, the Red-billed Tropicbird (Payanke Labek Rouz, Phaethon aethereus) is an occasional vagrant.