South Georgia Diving-Petrel
Pelecanoides georgicus
A very small, chunky petrel. Note the short broad wings and the pale white throat and underside. Look for whitish rump patches and gray feathering behind the eyes. Breeds on islands in the circumpolar subantarctic zone. Most populations nest on rocky slopes or flat land, but the population on Codfish Island, New Zealand, nests in burrows within unstable sand dunes no more than 100 meters from the sea; this population is sometimes split as a different species. Difficult to distinguish from Common Diving-Petrel at sea due to subtlety of plumage differences.
Identification
The South Georgia diving petrel or Georgian diving-petrel (Pelecanoides georgicus) is one of five very similar small auk-like diving petrels of the southern oceans. It is native to the South Atlantic and islands of the southern Indian Ocean and south-eastern Australia.
Taxonomy
Genus: Pelecanoides; Family: Procellariidae; Order: Procellariiformes.
- Scientific name
- Pelecanoides georgicus
- Authority
- Murphy & Harper, 1916
- Order
- Procellariiformes
- Family
- Procellariidae
- Genus
- Pelecanoides
Range and habitat
- Migration
- Resident species
Behavior
Migration pattern: Resident species.
Conservation
Population trend: declining.
- Population trend
- declining
Photos
Distribution
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