Black-winged petrel

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Black-winged petrel
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Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Procellariiformes
Family: Procellariidae
Genus: Pterodroma
Species:
P. nigripennis
Binomial name
Pterodroma nigripennis
(Rothschild, 1893)
Pterodroma nigripennis map.svg

The black-winged petrel (Pterodroma nigripennis) is a species of seabird in the family Procellariidae. It breeds on a number of oceanic islands in the tropical and subtropical East Pacific Ocean and spends the rest of the year at sea.

Contents

Description

Near Vanua Levu, Fiji Isles Blackwinged petrel upperwing jun08.JPG
Near Vanua Levu, Fiji Isles

The black-winged petrel is a small species of petrel with long, narrow wings. Its length averages 29 centimetres (11 in) and its wingspan averages 67 centimetres (26 in). It has a small head and short black beak, a slender body and square-cut tail. It has a pale grey cap and nape, white cheeks and a dark grey collar. The dorsal surface of the body is pale grey and the upperside of the wings is pale grey near the base but dark greyish-black along the outer edge. The underparts are white and the outer edges of the wings are black. The tail is barred in black and white. [2]

Distribution

The black-winged petrel is a pelagic species native to the East Pacific Ocean, living out at sea and only coming to land in order to breed. Its breeding range stretches from Lord Howe Island and eastern Australia to New Caledonia, New Zealand (the Kermadec Islands, Three Kings Islands, Chatham Islands) [3] and the Austral Islands (French Polynesia) in the east. The largest colony in the world is on Macauley Island (Kermadec Islands). [3] Outside the breeding season it migrates further north and most commonly occurs in a broad belt of ocean between Peru and Hawaii. [4]

Biology

Living as it does in the open ocean, little is known of its feeding habits. It mostly catches prey by skimming across the surface of the sea or pattering across the water with its feet, snatching up any suitable prey item. [2] Its diet includes cephalopods and prawns and it sometimes associates with other members of the order Procellariiformes as it fishes. [4] It breeds on tropical and subtropical islands in the Pacific Ocean. It digs a tunnel up to a metre (yard) long in sandy soil on a grassy slope inland from the shore. The entrance is often concealed by bushes. It lays a single egg in a chamber at the end of the passage, lining the nest with leaves and other material. The incubation period is about 45 days, both parents feed the young bird and it fledges in about 85 days. [2] On Phillip Island in the Norfolk Islands Group, black-winged petrel nestlings are occasionally preyed upon by the endemic Phillip Island centipede ( Cormocephalus coynei ), [5] but the petrel population appears to be resilient to this. [6]

Status

There is estimated to be a global population of black-winged petrels somewhere in the region of eight to ten million individuals. This large population is spread out over a wide area and the IUCN, in its Red Book of Endangered Species, lists the bird as being of least concern. [1]

Related Research Articles

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The gadfly petrels or Pterodroma are a genus of about 35 species of petrels, part of the seabird order Procellariiformes. The gadfly petrels are named for their speedy weaving flight, as if evading gadflies (horseflies). The flight action is also reflected in the name Pterodroma, from Ancient Greek pteron, "wing" and dromos, "runner".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chatham Islands petrel</span> Species of bird

The Chatham Islands petrel, also known as the Chatham petrel or ranguru (Māori), is a medium-sized, grey, white and black gadfly petrel. It only breeds on the Chatham Islands, New Zealand, and until recently was restricted to the 218-hectare Rangatira or South-East Island.

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

Cook's petrel, or the tītī or blue-footed petrel, is a Procellariform seabird. It is a member of the gadfly petrels and part of the subgenus Cookilaria Bonaparte, 1856, which includes the very similar Stejneger's petrel.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bonin petrel</span> Species of bird

The Bonin petrel or nunulu is a seabird in the family Procellariidae. It is a small gadfly petrel that is found in the northwest Pacific Ocean. Its secretive habits, remote breeding colonies and limited range have resulted in few studies and many aspects of the species' biology are poorly known.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Great-winged petrel</span> Species of bird

The great-winged petrel is a petrel living and breeding in the world's Southern Ocean.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">White-headed petrel</span> Species of bird

The white-headed petrel, also known as the white-headed fulmar, is a species of seabird in the petrel family, Procellariidae. It is about 400 mm (16 in) in length.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">White-necked petrel</span> Species of bird

The white-necked petrel, also known as the white-naped petrel, is a species of seabird in the family Procellariidae. During the non-breeding season it occurs throughout a large part of the Pacific, but it is only known to breed on Macauley Island in New Zealand's Kermadec Islands and the Australian territory of Norfolk Island and Phillip Island. It formerly bred on Raoul Island, but has now been extirpated from this locality due to predation by rats and cats. Reports of breeding on Merelava, Vanuatu, are more likely to be the very similar Vanuatu petrel, P. occulta, which some consider to be a subspecies of the white-necked petrel. The IUCN rating as vulnerable is for the "combined" species.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Masatierra petrel</span> Species of bird

Masatierra petrel or De Filippi's petrel, is a species of seabird in the family Procellariidae. It is endemic to Chile where it nests in the Juan Fernández Islands and Desventuradas Islands. Its natural habitats are open seas and rocky shores.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Juan Fernández petrel</span> Species of bird

The Juan Fernández petrel is a species of seabird in the family Procellariidae. It nests on a single island off the coast of Chile, in the Juan Fernández Archipelago. It was previously classified as a subspecies of the white-necked petrel, which is found in tropical waters of the Pacific and Indian Oceans.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Soft-plumaged petrel</span> Species of bird

The soft-plumaged petrel is a species of seabird in the family Procellariidae.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kermadec petrel</span> Species of bird

The Kermadec petrel is a species of gadfly petrel in the family Procellariidae. It is 38 cm long with a wingspan of 100 cm. It is polymorphic, with light, dark and intermediate morphs known. It eats squid, fish and other marine creatures.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Grey-faced petrel</span> Species of bird

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Avivore</span> Animal that preys on and eats birds

An avivore is a specialized predator of birds, with birds making up a large proportion of its diet. Such bird-eating animals come from a range of groups.

Cormocephalus coynei is a species of centipede found on the uninhabited Phillip and Nepean islands to the south of Norfolk Island. It is also known as the Phillip Island centipede. The species was observed on Phillip Island in 1792, but was not formally described until 1984. It can grow up to 23.5 cm, and is reddish brown and orange in colour. The Phillip Island centipede is known for its habit of preying on vertebrates including geckos, skinks, black-winged petrel nestlings, and fish, as well as other small arthropods. The centipede may consume petrel chicks at a rate between ~2100 and ~3730 nestlings per year, across the island's population of centipedes. It is theorized that the centipede was able to enter this ecological niche due to the absence of endemic mammalian predators on the island.

References

  1. 1 2 BirdLife International (2018). "Pterodroma nigripennis". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2018: e.T22697954A132614122. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2018-2.RLTS.T22697954A132614122.en . Retrieved 13 November 2021.
  2. 1 2 3 "Black-winged Petrel (Pterodroma nigripennis)". Planet of Birds. 11 September 2011. Retrieved 2 September 2013.
  3. 1 2 Colin Miskelly; Dafna Gilad; Graeme Arthur Taylor; Alan Tennyson; Susan M. Waugh (2019). "A review of the distribution and size of gadfly petrel (Pterodroma spp.) colonies throughout New Zealand". Tuhinga: Records of the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa. 30. Te Papa: 99–177. ISSN   1173-4337. Wikidata   Q106839633.
  4. 1 2 Butchart, S.; Calvert, R.; Ekstrom, J. "Black-winged Petrel Pterodroma nigripennis". BirdLife International. Retrieved 2 September 2013.
  5. ↑ Halpin, Luke R.; Terrington, Daniel I.; Jones, Holly P.; Mott, Rowan; Wong, Wei Wen; Dow, David C.; Carlile, Nicholas; Clarke, Rohan H. (3 August 2021). "Arthropod Predation of Vertebrates Structures Trophic Dynamics in Island Ecosystems". The American Naturalist. 198 (4): 540–550. doi: 10.1086/715702 . ISSN   0003-0147. PMID   34559614.
  6. ↑ Halpin, Luke; Clarke, Rohan; Mott, Rowan (3 August 2021). "Giant bird-eating centipedes exist – and they're surprisingly important for their ecosystem". The Conversation. Retrieved 13 August 2021.

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