Anous stolidus; Print; The brown noddy or common noddy (Anous stolidus) is a seabird in the family Laridae. The largest of the noddies; it can be told from the closely related black noddy by its larger size and plumage; which is dark brown rather than black. The brown noddy is a tropical seabird with a worldwide distribution; ranging from Hawaii to the Tuamotu Archipelago and Australia in the Pacific Ocean; from the Red Sea to the Seychelles and Australia in the Indian Ocean and in the Caribbean to Tristan da Cunha in the Atlantic Ocean. The brown noddy is colonial; usually nesting on elevated situations on cliffs or in short trees or shrubs. It only occasionally nests on the ground. A single egg is laid by the female of a pair each breeding season.; 1700-1880