Austral storm petrel

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Austral storm petrels
Oceanites oceanicusPCCA20070623-3634B.jpg
Wilson's storm petrel (Oceanites oceanicus)
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Procellariiformes
Family: Oceanitidae
Forbes, 1881
Genera

Austral storm petrels, or southern storm petrels, are seabirds in the family Oceanitidae, part of the order Procellariiformes. These smallest of seabirds feed on planktonic crustaceans and small fish picked from the surface, typically while hovering. Their flight is fluttering and sometimes bat-like.

Contents

Austral storm petrels have a cosmopolitan distribution, being found in all oceans, although only Wilson's storm petrels are found in the Northern Hemisphere. They are almost all strictly pelagic, coming to land only when breeding. In the case of most petrel species, little is known of their behaviour and distribution at sea, where they can be hard to find and harder to identify. They are colonial nesters, displaying strong philopatry to their natal colonies and nesting sites. Most species nest in crevices or burrows, and all but one species attend the breeding colonies nocturnally. Pairs form long-term monogamous bonds and share incubation and chick-feeding duties. Like many species of seabirds, nesting is highly protracted with incubation taking up to 50 days and fledging another 70 days after that.

The family contains just ten species which are assigned to five different genera. Several species are threatened by human activities. The New Zealand storm petrel was presumed extinct until rediscovered in 2003. The principal threats to storm petrels are introduced species, particularly mammals, in their breeding colonies; many storm petrels habitually nest on isolated mammal-free islands and are unable to cope with predators such as rats and feral cats.

Taxonomy

The family Oceanitidae was introduced in 1881 by the English zoologist William Alexander Forbes. [1] Two subfamilies of storm petrel were traditionally recognized. [2] The Oceanitinae, or austral storm-petrels, were mostly found in southern waters (though Wilson's storm petrel regularly migrates into the Northern Hemisphere); the ten species are placed in five genera. [3] The Hydrobatinae, or northern storm petrels, were formerly placed in two genera Hydrobates and Oceanodroma . They are largely restricted to the Northern Hemisphere, although a few visit or breed a short distance beyond the Equator.


Up and down! - up and down!
From the base of the wave to the billow’s crown,
And amidst the flashing and feathery foam
The stormy petrel finds a home, -
A home, if such a place may be
For her who lives on the wide, wide sea.

O’er the deep! - o’er the deep!
Where the whale and the shark and the sword-fish sleep, -
Outflying the blast and the driving rain,
The petrel telleth her tale — in vain!

From "The Stormy Petrel" poem by Barry Cornwall [4]

Cytochrome b DNA sequence analysis suggests that the family was paraphyletic and more accurately treated as distinct families. [5] The same study found that the austral storm petrels are basal within the Procellariiformes. The first split was the subfamily Oceanitidae, with the Hydrobatidae splitting from the rest of the order at a later date. Few fossil species have been found, with the earliest being from the Upper Miocene. [2]

Morphology and flight

Austral storm petrels are the smallest of all the seabirds, ranging in size from 15–26 cm in length. Two body shapes occur in the family; the austral storm petrels have short wings, square tails, elongated skulls, and long legs. The legs of all storm petrels are proportionally longer than those of other Procellariiformes, but they are very weak and unable to support the bird's weight for more than a few steps. [2]

The plumage of the Oceanitidae is dark with white underparts (with the exception of Wilson's storm petrel) Onley and Scofield (2007) state that much published information is incorrect, and that photographs in the major seabird books and websites are frequently incorrectly ascribed as to species. They also consider that several national bird lists include species which have been incorrectly identified or have been accepted on inadequate evidence. [6]

The white-faced storm petrel moves across the water's surface in a series of bounding leaps. Whitefacedstormpetrel1.jpg
The white-faced storm petrel moves across the water's surface in a series of bounding leaps.

Storm petrels use a variety of techniques to aid flight. Most species occasionally feed by surface pattering, holding and moving their feet on the water's surface while holding steady above the water. They remain stationary by hovering with rapid fluttering or using the wind to anchor themselves in place. [7] This method of feeding flight is most commonly used by austral storm petrels. The white-faced storm petrel possesses a unique variation on pattering, holding its wings motionless and at an angle into the wind, it pushes itself off the water's surface in a succession of bounding jumps. [8] Storm petrels also use dynamic soaring and slope soaring to travel over the ocean surface, although this method is used less by this family compared to the northern storm petrels. [9] [10] Slope soaring is more straightforward and favoured by the Oceanitidae, [7] the storm petrel turns to the wind, gaining height, from where it can then glide back down to the sea.

Diet

The diet of many storm petrels species is poorly known owing to difficulties in researching; overall the family is thought to concentrate on crustaceans. [11] Small fish and molluscs are also taken by many species. Some species are known to be rather more specialised; the grey-backed storm petrel is known to concentrate on the larvae of goose barnacles.

Almost all species forage in the pelagic zone, except for Elliot's storm petrels, which are coastal feeders in the Galapagos Islands. Although storm petrels are capable of swimming well and often form rafts on the water's surface, they do not feed on the water. Instead, feeding usually takes place on the wing, with birds hovering above or "walking" on the surface (see morphology) and snatching small morsels. Rarely, prey is obtained by making shallow dives under the surface. [2]

Like many types of seabirds, storm petrels associate with other species of seabird and marine mammal species to help obtain food. They may benefit from the actions of diving predators such as seals and penguins, which push prey up towards the surface while hunting, allowing the surface-feeding storm petrels to reach them. [12]

Distribution and movements

The austral storm petrels typically breed found in the Southern Hemisphere, in contrast to the northern storm-petrel in the Northern Hemisphere. [11]

Several species of storm petrels undertake migrations after the breeding season. The most widely travelled migrant is Wilson's storm petrel, which after breeding in Antarctica and the subantarctic islands, regularly crosses the equator to the waters of the north Pacific and Atlantic Oceans. Some species, such as the grey-backed storm petrel, are thought to be essentially sedentary and do not undertake any migrations away from their breeding islands.

Breeding

Storm petrels nest colonially, for the most part on islands, although a few species breed on the mainland, particularly Antarctica. Nesting sites are attended at night to avoid predators. [13] Storm petrels display high levels of philopatry, returning to their natal colonies to breed. In one instance, a band-rumped storm petrel was caught as an adult 2 m from its natal burrow. [14] Storm petrels nest either in burrows dug into soil or sand, or in small crevices in rocks and scree. Competition for nesting sites is intense in colonies where storm petrels compete with other burrowing petrels, with shearwaters having been recorded killing storm petrels to occupy their burrows. [15] Colonies can be extremely large and dense; 840,000 pairs of white-faced storm petrel nest on South East Island in the Chatham Islands in densities between 1.18 and 0.47 burrows/m2.

The chick of a fork-tailed storm petrel Fork-tailchick.jpg
The chick of a fork-tailed storm petrel

Storm petrels are monogamous and form long-term pair bonds that last a number of years. As with the other Procellariiformes, a single egg is laid by a pair in a breeding season; if the egg fails, then usually no attempt is made to lay again (although it happens rarely). Both sexes incubate in shifts of up to six days. The egg hatches after 40 or 50 days; the young is brooded continuously for another 7 days or so before being left alone in the nest during the day and fed by regurgitation at night. Meals fed to the chick weigh around 10–20% of the parent's body weight, and consist of both prey items and stomach oil. Stomach oil is an energy-rich (its calorific value is around 9.6 kcal/g) oil created by partly digested prey in a part of the fore gut known as the proventriculus. [16] By partly converting prey items into stomach oil, storm petrels can maximise the amount of energy chicks receive during feeding, an advantage for small seabirds that can only make a single visit to the chick during a 24-hour period (at night). [17] The average age at which chicks fledge depends on the species, taking between 50 and 70 days. The time taken to hatch and raise the young is long for the bird's size, but is typical of seabirds, which in general are K-selected, living much longer, delaying breeding for longer, and investing more effort into fewer young. [18] The young leave their burrow at about 62 days. They are independent almost at once and quickly disperse into the ocean. They return to their original colony after 2 or 3 years, but do not breed until at least 4 years old. Storm petrels have been recorded living as long as 30 years. [19]

Threats and conservation

The New Zealand storm-petrel is critically endangered and was considered extinct Oceanites maorianus.jpg
The New Zealand storm-petrel is critically endangered and was considered extinct

Several species of austral storm petrels are threatened by human activities. [20] The New Zealand storm petrel is listed as critically endangered, and was also considered extinct for many years, but was sighted again in 2003, though the population is likely to be very small. Storm petrels face the same threats as other seabirds; in particular, they are threatened by introduced species.

Species

The family contains ten species: [3]

ImageCommon nameScientific nameDistribution
Oceanites oceanicus - SE Tasmania (cropped).jpg Wilson's storm petrel Oceanites oceanicusSouth Shetland Islands
Oceanites-gracilis by Roar Johansen.jpg Elliot's storm petrel Oceanites gracilisGalápagos Islands, Peru and Chile
Pincoya storm petrel Oceanites pincoyaeChile
Grey-backed Storm Petrel 0A2A8780.jpg Grey-backed storm petrel Garrodia nereisAntarctica, Argentina, Australia, Chile, Falkland Islands, French Southern Territories, New Zealand, Saint Helena, South Africa, and South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands.
White-faced Storm-Petrel (16496947072).jpg White-faced storm petrel Pelagodroma marinaAustralia, New Zealand, Cape Verde Islands, Canary Islands and Savage Islands.
White-bellied Storm-Petrel-Lord Howe Island-26March2013.jpg White-bellied storm petrel Fregetta grallariaAngola, Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Chile, Ecuador, French Polynesia, French Southern Territories, Maldives, Namibia, New Zealand, Perú, Saint Helena, and South Africa.
Black-bellied Storm Petrel.jpg Black-bellied storm petrel or Gould's storm petrelFregetta tropicaAntarctica, Argentina, Australia, Bouvet Island, Brazil, Chile, Falkland Islands, French Polynesia, French Southern Territories, Madagascar, Mozambique, New Zealand, Oman, Peru, Saint Helena, São Tomé and Príncipe, Solomon Islands, South Africa, South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands, Uruguay, and Vanuatu.
Oceanites maorianus.jpg New Zealand storm petrel Fregetta maorianaCoromandel Peninsula of New Zealand's North Island,
New Caledonian storm petrel Fregetta lineataNew Caledonia and Australia
Polynesian storm petrel (including white-throated storm petrel)Nesofregetta fuliginosaChile, French Polynesia, Kiribati, New Caledonia, Vanuatu, possibly American Samoa

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Procellariiformes is an order of seabirds that comprises four families: the albatrosses, the petrels and shearwaters, and two families of storm petrels. Formerly called Tubinares and still called tubenoses in English, procellariiforms are often referred to collectively as the petrels, a term that has been applied to all members of the order, or more commonly all the families except the albatrosses. They are almost exclusively pelagic, and have a cosmopolitan distribution across the world's oceans, with the highest diversity being around New Zealand.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Seabird</span> Birds that have adapted to life within the marine environment

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Northern storm petrel</span> Genus and family of birds

Northern storm petrels are seabirds in the genus Hydrobates in the family Hydrobatidae, part of the order Procellariiformes. The family was once lumped with the similar austral storm petrels in the combined storm petrels, but have been split, as they were not closely related. These smallest of seabirds feed on planktonic crustaceans and small fish picked from the surface, typically while hovering. Their flight is fluttering and sometimes bat-like.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Petrel</span> Seabird

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Procellariidae</span> Family of seabirds which includes petrels, shearweters and prions

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">European storm petrel</span> Migratory seabird in the family Hydrobatidae

The European storm petrel, also known as British storm petrel, or just storm petrel, is a species of seabird in the northern storm petrel family, Hydrobatidae. The small, square-tailed bird is entirely black except for a broad, white rump and a white band on the under wings, and it has a fluttering, bat-like flight. The large majority of the population breeds on islands off the northern coasts of Europe, with the greatest numbers in the Faroe Islands, United Kingdom, Ireland, and Iceland. The Mediterranean population is a separate subspecies whose strongholds are Filfla Island (Malta), Sicily, and the Balearic Islands. This subspecies is indiscernible at sea from its Atlantic relatives.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wilson's storm petrel</span> Species of bird

Wilson's storm petrel, also known as Wilson's petrel, is a small seabird of the austral storm petrel family Oceanitidae. It is one of the most abundant bird species in the world and has a circumpolar distribution mainly in the seas of the southern hemisphere but extending northwards during the summer of the northern hemisphere. The world population was estimated in 2022 as stable at 8 to 20 million birds. In 2010 it had been estimated at 12-30 million. A 1998 book had estimated more than 50 million pairs. The name commemorates the Scottish-American ornithologist Alexander Wilson. The genus name Oceanites refers to the mythical Oceanids, the three thousand daughters of Tethys. The species name is from Latin oceanus, "ocean".

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References

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  2. 1 2 3 4 Carboneras, C. (1992) "Family Hydrobatidae (Storm petrels)" pp. 258–265 in Handbook of Birds of the World Vol 1. Barcelona:Lynx Edicions, ISBN   84-87334-10-5
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  11. 1 2 Brooke, M. (2004). Albatrosses and Petrels Across the World Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK ISBN   0-19-850125-0
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  13. Bretagnolle, V. (1990). "Effect of moon on activity of petrels (Class Aves) from the Selvagen Islands (Portugal)". Canadian Journal of Zoology. 68 (7): 1404–1409. doi:10.1139/z90-209.
  14. Harris, M. (1979). "Survival and ages of first breeding of Galapagos seabirds" (PDF). Bird-Banding. 50 (1): 56–61. doi:10.2307/4512409. JSTOR   4512409.
  15. Ramos, J.A.; Monteiro, L.R.; Sola, E.; Moniz, Z. (1997). "Characteristics and competition of nest cavities in burrowing Procellariiformes" (PDF). Condor. 99 (3): 634–641. doi:10.2307/1370475. JSTOR   1370475.
  16. Warham, J. (1976). "The Incidence, Function and ecological significance of petrel stomach oils" (PDF). Proceedings of the New Zealand Ecological Society. 24: 84–93. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2006-07-24.
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