Northern Giant-Petrel
Macronectes halli
Very large (size of smaller albatross) with massive pale bill that always has a pinkish tip (often darker than rest of bill). Plumage varies; most birds dark overall or with whitish face, but some have very whitish head and underparts; does not have a white morph, unlike Southern Giant. Juveniles are sooty brown which fades to gray brown as they age. Widespread around Southern Oceans. Habits much like Southern Giant and the two readily associate together often following ships.
Identification
The northern giant petrel averages 90 cm (35 in) in length, with a range of 80 to 95 cm (31 to 37 in), possessing a wingspan of 150 to 210 cm (59 to 83 in). Size is somewhat variable and this species is broadly the same size as its southern sister species. The largest-bodied colony is in the South Georgia Islands, where 56 males averaged 4.9 kg (11 lb) and 43 females average 3.72 kg (8.2 lb). The smallest-bodied are on the Chatham Islands, where 19 males averaged 3.66 kg (8.1 lb) and 21 females averaged 2.83 kg (6.2 lb). Overall, weight for the species can range from 2.5 to 5.8 kg (5.5 to 12.8 lb). Its plumage consists of grey-brown body with lighter coloured forehead, sides of face, and chin. Its bill is between 90 and 110 mm (3.5–4.3 in) long, slightly longer on average than the southern giant petrel, and is pinkish yellow with a brown tip. Its eyes are grey. The tarsus of the northern giant petrel is slightly longer on average than the southern species, but the southern has longer wings on average. The juvenile Macronectes halli is entirely dark brown and lightens as it ages. It can be differentiated from Macronectes giganteus by the top of the bill, which on the southern species is green.
Taxonomy
The northern giant petrel was formally described in 1912 by the Australian born ornithologist Gregory Mathews as a subspecies of the southern giant petrel with the trinomial name Macronectes giganteus halli. The specific epithet halli was chosen to honour the Australian ornithologist Robert Hall who had described the birds breeding on the Kerguelen Islands. The northern giant petrel is now considered to be a separate species and has the binomial name Macronectes halli. It is monotypic: no subspecies are recognised. The genus name combines the Ancient Greek makros meaning "great" and nēktēs meaning "swimmer". The name "petrel" refers to the Biblical account of Saint Peter walking on water, referring to the way these birds run on top of the water as they are getting airborne.<p>The two giant petrel species make up the genus Macronectes. They belong to the order Procellariiformes, the tube-nosed seabirds or petrels. All tube-noses have tubular nostrils, and all those in the family Procellariidae, the true petrels, have their nostrils united along the top of the bill. Procellariform birds have between seven and nine distinct horny plates for their bill, and in petrels one of these plates forms the hooked portion of their upper bill called the maxillary unguis. They produce a stomach oil made up of wax esters and triglycerides that is stored in the proventriculus. This can be sprayed out of their mouths as a defence against predators as well as an energy rich food source for chicks and for the adults during their long flights. Finally, they also have a salt gland that is situated above the nasal passage and helps desalinate their bodies, due to the high amount of sea water that they imbibe. It excretes a concentrated saline solution from their nostrils.
- Scientific name
- Macronectes halli
- Authority
- Mathews, 1912
- Order
- Procellariiformes
- Family
- Procellariidae
- Genus
- Macronectes
Range and habitat
The northern giant petrel is pelagic and is found throughout the Southern Ocean north of the Antarctic Convergence Zone, and north through Chile, Argentina, South Africa, New Zealand, and half of Australia. Over 4,500 pairs nest on islands in the South Georgia group. They also nest on some of the Chatham Islands, Kerguelen Islands, Crozet Islands, Macquarie Island and others. Their overall range is 82,600,000 km2 (31,900,000 sq mi).
- Breeding range
- SO : islands n of Antarctic Convergence from South Georgia to Macquarie (far se of Australia) and Stewart, Chatham (e of South I.), Antipodes (se of Stewart I.), and Auckland and Campbell is. (s of South I.; New Zealand)
- Non-breeding range
- widespread in all s oceans mostly n of Antarctic Convergence
- Migration
- Complete migrants
Behavior
Migration pattern: Complete migrants.
Conservation
Population trend: rising.
- Population trend
- rising
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
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