Great-winged Petrel
Pterodroma macroptera
A medium-sized, bulky dark petrel with a large head and long pointed wings. It often shows a grizzled, gray scaly muzzle around the bill. It flies fast with a flexed wrist and its heavy head angled downward, giving it a characteristic appearance. It breeds on subantarctic islands between the Tristan group and western Australia, dispersing across the southern oceans between 30 and 50°S, where it is a deep ocean specialist. Several species are similar to Great-winged Petrel. Gray-faced Petrel, sometimes considered the same species, breeds off New Zealand and is almost identical except for a more extensive grizzled face patch. The smaller Kerguelen Petrel has a more contrasting silvery underwing. The gadfly petrels mostly have more pale patterning on the underwing or belly and lack the bulkiness of Great-winged Petrel.
Identification
This is a large seabird, with a body length of 42–45 cm. The bird is completely dark brown except for a variable patch of white near the base of the bill, which is black.<p>It is separated from sooty shearwater and short-tailed shearwater by the all-dark underwing, the thick, stubby bill, and different jizz. The similar flesh-footed shearwater has a light, pinkish bill. Petrels in the genus Procellaria are larger and have a less bounding flight.[citation needed]
Taxonomy
This species was formerly treated as containing two subspecies - P. m. macroptera and P. m. gouldi, the latter of which is endemic to New Zealand. As of 2014, the latter is recognized as a species in its own right, the grey-faced petrel (Pterodroma gouldi). In 2016 further research was published supporting the full species status of the grey-faced petrel.
- Scientific name
- Pterodroma macroptera
- Authority
- (Smith, A, 1840)
- Order
- Procellariiformes
- Family
- Procellariidae
- Genus
- Pterodroma
Range and habitat
The great-winged petrel breeds in the Southern Hemisphere between 30 and 50 degrees south with colonies on Tristan da Cunha, Gough Island, the Crozet Islands, the Prince Edward Islands, the Kerguelen Islands and on the coasts of southern Australia. It is a rare vagrant to the Pacific Ocean off the coast of California, United States.
- Breeding range
- SO : subtropical to temperate is. from Tristan da Cunha and Gough (sc Atlantic Ocean) to Kerguelen Is. (se Indian Ocean) and islets off sw Australia
- Non-breeding range
- subtropical to temperate South Atlantic and South Indian oceans to s African and w Australian waters
- Migration
- Complete migrants
Behavior
The species feeds mostly on squid and to a lesser degree on fish and crustaceans. Prey is generally caught at night, by dipping and surface-seizing. The great-winged petrel will on occasion follow whales and associate with other related bird species to feed. Breeding occurs in the southern winter (beginning in April); nests are either solitary or in small colonies, located in burrows or aboveground among boulders or low vegetation.
Conservation
- Population trend
- declining
Photos
Distribution
Other Birds
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Calliope obscura
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Common Myna
Acridotheres tristis
A large, black-and-brown myna with white wing patches, yellow bill, and yellow legs. Gregarious and often found in noisy flocks. Aggressive, often driving away other birds. Can be found just about anywhere but the densest forests. Native to southern Asia, where it is among the most common species. Widely introduced elsewhere in the world, including Australia, New Zealand, and Hawaii.
Bornean Forktail
Enicurus borneensis
A typical forktail, with piebald plumage and long tail. Black head, upper back, chest and wings; white belly, rump, forecrown and wingbar; black and white tail and pale-pink legs. Inhabits shaded whitewater streams through montane rainforests, along which it perches on boulders and low-hanging branches. May overlap at mid-elevations with the very similar White-crowned Forktail which occurs in the lowlands, but Bornean has a longer tail and less extensive white on the head. Often detected by its vocalizations, a harsh buzzing whistle and high metallic whistles.
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